Rio 2096: Une histoire d'amour et de furie

Now this animated movie is more than complex. And I'm not talking only about the different time lines this has. Obviously one of the things this is trying to convey, is that you can't leave the past just laying there. Forgetting about it, just is not an option. If you believe the movie, there is always a connection. A weird one, but there is one and I'm sure many believe that too.

Even if you don't believe it, the visual style will grab your attention. It might wear off though after a while and might not keep you hooked until the end. Whatever the case, you have to like your movies to be a bit different and have a science fiction touch to them. If that is the case you will really like it ... if not, even the 6 I gave it, will sound too much in your eyes ...

What a beautiful animation, the graphics are so well outlined and delicate, the script is perfect, so sad and realistic, a historical drama poetically portrayed, but with all its pain and losses, in the struggles and wars, violence, injustice and love... It was one of the 19 films nominated for the Oscar for best animated film in the 86th edition of 2014, it deserved better luck, not only for the impeccable and highly meticulous production, but also for the historical context, strong and striking... Wonderful, sensitive and perfect animation.

"A Story of Love and Fury" is an animated film that portrays the love between an immortal hero and Janaína, the woman he has been in love with for 600 years. As a backdrop to the romance, Luiz Bolognesi's feature film highlights four phases of Brazilian history: colonization, slavery, the Military Regime and the future, in 2096, when there will be a war over water.

I don't write reviews often, but this is one movie that compelled me to write something; if not for the sake of this film being more than just ambitious, but for the sake of this film daring to be an homage to love, cynicism and the brutal reality of oppression.

For people privileged enough to not have to deal with the everyday worries of living under an oppressive regime, this movie may fall on deaf ears. However, anyone who struggles in their day-to-day lives under institutions setup to disrupt and disparage the average person into existing to survive and surviving to exist, you'll easily and quickly recognize that this movie works on so many parallels to real life that it feels less like an animated feature and more like a retelling of all the historical atrocities that remind us why it's important to never forget history.

There's no point in trying to review the story of Rio 2096 because the story itself is linear only in the sense that it follows a single soul through a series of different time periods; everything else about the film is non-linear and almost more like a series of short films wrapped in a single film about how little an individual person is in the grand scheme of society's perceived image (and the realities) of oppression.

Take note that this film pulls no punches. It's violent and sexually charged, making it highly unsuitable for younger audiences. However, this is a very poignant film that speaks volumes about the necessity of standing by the virtue of fortitude, even when it seems like the results are infinitesimal in the grand scheme of things.

This is a brilliant film that speaks on many levels.

In 1566, in Guanabara, the Tupinambá warrior Abeguar is in love with Janaína. When a jaguar attacks Abeguar and Janaína, he jumps off a cliff with her and he flies. The shaman advises Abeguar that he was the chosen one by the god Munhã to lead his tribe and fight against the evil Anhangá. When the tribe leader Piatã joins the French in the fight against the Portuguese, the entire Tupinambás are slaughtered and Abeguar turns into a bird that flies for more than two hundred years to find Janaina.

In 1825, the warrior is Manuel Balaio that lives with Janaína and their two daughters in Maranhão. When one of his daughters is raped by the abusive police commander, Balaio leads the oppressed locals against the police and they take down the Caxias city. The government sends Duque de Caxias and his troops that vanquish the rebels and Balaio turns into a bird again that flies for more than one hundred and forty years to find Janaína again.

In 1968, in Rio, the warrior is Cau, but Janaína is a revolutionary student that lives with another insurgent. When Cau and Janaína are arrested by the repressive police, Cau rats the insurgents to protect Janaína from the torture and he becomes an outcast by his former fellows. Only the jailer Feijão talks to him and Cau teaches him politics. With the amnesty, Cau moves to the slums with Feijão and becomes a teacher and member of the criminal group Falange Vermelha. When the police invade the slum, Cau turns into a bird again that flies for more than one hundred years to find Janaína again.

In 2096, in Rio de Janeiro, very few people can afford water that is mostly used in the ethanol plantations by the governmental company Aquabrás. The warrior is now a journalist and Janaína a call-girl. When the president of Aquabrás is kidnapped by a group of insurgents, the warrior sees Janaína on television and heads to Aquabrás to save her.

"Uma História de Amor e Fúria" (meaning "A Story of Love and Fury") is an unconventional Brazilian animation with dramatic highlights of moments of oppression, uprising of the oppressed people and love of the Brazilian history. This animation was awarded with Cristal award in the Annecy International Animated Film Festival in the Best Feature category but unfortunately is neither known in Brazil nor overseas. It is amazing that this is the first review in IMDb. Last but not the least; this is not an entertaining animation but a story to be reflected. As the immortal warrior says in his last sentence, "to live without knowing the past is to live in the dark". My vote is nine.

Title (Brazil): "Uma História de Amor e Fúria" ("A Story of Love and Fury")

Still a 7 out of 10, because it's an original, unique, and awesome story about love and loss. Rio2096: A Story of Love & Fury is one of my most favorite films of all time, it's seductively intriguing and has such a great story.

The problem here is that The Immortal Warrior (released in 2020), states that this is an English-language sequel to Rio 2096, but actually it's not a sequel at all, it's literally just an English dubbing of the film that released in 2013.

The English dubbing isn't terrible or anything, but it certainly lacks the charm of the original film's language. There are always nuances and linguistical minutiae that seems lost when a film is re-dubbed, and in certain scenes throughout the three stories this is certainly present.

The thing is -- and the most important part about all of this -- is that....

THIS IS NOT A SEQUEL

If you were expecting a continuation of the events that happen in the last story, you're sorely mistaken.

This doesn't make the film bad, but basically it's just a redub of a great film with nothing new.

If you haven't already seen Rio 2096: A Story of Love and Fury, and you aren't fond of subtitles, then I suppose The Immortal Warrior makes sense to watch. But otherwise, it would probably be better to stick with the original 2013 film.

Just remember, this is not a sequel, it's the exact same film just in English.