Terra Estrangeira

Fado is a sad almost bluesy style of Portuguese Gypsy music that is heard repeatedly trough the movie. As explained by one of the main characters (Igor) it also means fate.

Indeed it's fate that bring the two main characters Paco and Alex together and triggers the problems that ensue.

On the whole I enjoyed it quite a bit. It starts out as an 'on the down and outs' drama/road movie an builds into a suspenseful thriller / road movie.

There were two things that I found unrealistic that kept me from giving it a higher rating (I gave it an 8). The first is the major point of why did Alex give the stuff away. She was so desperate for cash that she sold her passport for a paltry sum and then she gives away things worth thousands to a stranger? Her explanation was unconvincing. Also how did they get through the gate, where were the cops?

Sorry Russ Karlberg, but you didn't get anything.

The history and the way it was shoot is intensional, to represent a very bad time in Brazilian history, the years between 1980-1994. Inflation, government holding peoples money in bank, etc. The director Walter Salles said he shooted in black and white to show that bad times.

Maybe only Brazilians full understand the meaning of this movie, maybe the history is indeed complicated to the people that do not lived here in that time.

And for Ien Colby, who asked "Also how did they get through the gate, where were the cops?": man, why do you think they went to that very little town? Just for that, so the frontier isn't very guarded. Go there and see for yourself, it's really like that.

I really enjoyed this movie and recommended it, a fine movie like all Walter Salles movies, specially for Brazilians.

This existential thriller, in Portuguese with English subtitles, is a modern version of the American filmes noires of the 40s, complete with a surprise twist at the end. It is riveting from beginning to end. My only criticism is its poor production values. The film looks cheaply made, and it probably was, so the black and white cinematography is vastly inferior to that of Godard in Vivre Sa Vie, to cite another film noir of more than 30 years earlier. Most maddening of all, the subtitles are often hard to read. When will filmmakers learn and provide yellow subtitles so that they can be read against a white background. I'd give this an 8 overall, although with better production values it could have been higher.

I was very disappointed with this film. Nothing that happens makes any sense. Even the other reviews here mention that the plot is not believable and that the production values are poor. I was expecting to see the beautiful scenery of Brazil and Portugal, but everything looks washed out and grainy.

While the acting was good, it was wasted on the go-nowhere story. And as with Midnight, by the same director, the "twist" ending simply makes the whole story pointless. Why did they make this movie? I have no idea.

I wasn't sure about getting this movie on DVD because I really do have something against people making black and white films in the 21st century, but I ended up buying it anyway. I still don't understand why it had to be black and white, but that's the only negativity I can see about the film, and it sure is a perfect example to see the definitive rise of Brazilian cinema. Not everyone can understand a film like this, but it's quite rewarding to those who do. Unlike O Homem Que Copiava, the surrealism fits this movie pretty well, and the acting is at least as good as that one, or other successful Brazilian films such as Bicho de sete cabeças, Cidade De Deus, Brava Gente Brasileira, etc..

My only hope is that this gem doesn't get insulted and raped by a crappy Hollywood remake. It's amazing to see how those guys spend zillions of Dollars and still can't make a movie that's 1% as good as this possibly low-budget flick.

Bravo to the entire crew! 10/10