Ele, o Boto

"Ele, o Boto" is based on an old legend of a Water Sprite who takes on form of Amazon river dolphin. He only takes on his humanoid form when he wants a mate. However, the village men hate the water sprite and want him dead. All he wanted was some mates, due to his lonelyness....

Despite the low-budget, "Ele o Boto" is a wonderfully done and haunting movie that will captivate myth and folklore buffs or people whom are into dolphins, water-sprites or merfolk like creatures. I don't think CG and the big name companies at Hollywood or parts of Europe could not do something this interesting and effective.

Strange, obscure Brazillian film that takes place in a picturesque fishing village, where the men spend their days at sea while their women wait for them on shore. A "Boto," or merman-like creature visits the lonely women, and takes them as lovers before disappearing into the sea. One woman in particular becomes known as the "Boto's woman" and he returns after some years to reunite with her. "O boto" is special in that it is a truly erotic film, without being at all explicit. The tale is based on Brazillian folklore and is certainly unique, and enchanting besides. One drawback of this fine film is that many scenes are filmed at night, by moonlight, and they are so dimly lit that it isn't always easy to see what is going on. This is a shame because the cast is primarily beautiful, in particular the young Brazillian actor Paolo Vinicious, from 'Emerald Forest." Vinicious has an important role as Luciano, the bastard son of the Boto. The merman creature himself doesn't seem to have human emotions, even as he can take human form at will. Boto has no qualms about seducing the love of his son's life, the beautiful Corinna, who goes insane after her coupling with the merman. Boto's son has the same sensuous and brooding energy as his father, and witnessing their final confrontation is a centerpiece of the film. "O Boto" possesses a feeling of sadness and mystery. It is a slow and quiet film, a dreamlike and always fascinating work from Brazil. Unfortunately there is only an old VHS print available for English speaking audiences, but this is better than nothing. recommended for fans of strange and off beat cinema.

The movie plot is based on the folklore of "The Botte, or Dolphin" who comes out of the water disguised as a human in order to entice the village women to make love with him. He is particularly interested in the heroine of the movie, Corina, who has born him a child. The men of the village hate "The Botte" and want to kill him. From looking at the videocase, one would expect a somewhat "racy" film, but in actuality the movie is quite tame. There is some nudity, but nothing too explicit.