Bacurau

One of my faves of the past year. Literally have nothing bad or negative to say about it. So I'll keep this one short.

Bacurau embraces so many strong topics: the endemic violence in Brazil, the gun culture and god complex of the US, social gap, political corruption, historical resistance of Nordeste (Brazil's Northeast region) and the "complexo de vira-lata" (inferiority complex) of the people by their own country. These are all packed in a mystery/thriller/western entertaining film set in the Sertão. It's already a classic and an important addition to Brazilian contemporary cinema.

An ingeniously veiled & viciously incisive slice of Brazil's sociopolitical affairs that refuses to be confined by genre definitions, Bacurau is a blazingly original, deftly layered & thoroughly engaging delight that takes its inspirations from the works of both Sergio Leone & John Carpenter but creates something that's truly unique & relevant to the nation's endemic concerns.

Written & directed by Kleber Mendonça Filho & Juliano Dornelles, the film is not only strange & mysterious at first but also dreamlike & unpredictable but as plot progresses and dots connect and stakes become clearer, it gives way to a vivid & violent showdown that's gleefully barbaric & extremely cathartic. Taking its time to cement the foundations, this is smart, subversive storytelling.

The story digs into Brazil's violence-fuelled history, political corruption, structural injustice & social gap through the small-town community, investing in its bustling life before acquainting us with the sinister threat that's lurking in the vicinity. The performances are solid throughout, the collective whole turning out to be greater than the sum of its parts. And the background score adds its own synth-flavoured bits to the final print.

Overall, Bacurau is a cleverly scripted, intelligently directed, finely photographed, expertly edited, steadily paced & strongly acted cinema that's thrilling, riveting & entertaining from the first frame to the last. A potent & powerful combination of sharp commentary & tangy extravaganza that's exquisitely balanced on all fronts, Bacurau is one of the best films of last year and is accomplished enough to find a spot amongst Brazil cinema's finest. Highly recommended.

One of the strangest films I've seen, in any language, but it must have been good because I'm still processing it a day or two later. The underlying meaning and the intent are not too far off the mark - we're all targeted, hunted and sacrificed by factions that seek to profit from our misfortune, lack of opportunity, demographic, vulnerability and fear; especially when amplified by poverty - if we don't look after ourselves, nobody will. One for all and all for one!

This movie gets you going in a way that maybe you weren't expecting from an action thriller and shows genuine characters that you come to care about really early. It also introduces you to a place that's rough and angry and you realize that there's a perfect symbiosis with this rugged land and with its people. The problems they suffer on a daily basis ( lack of water, food, unwilling and corrupted government officials ), make them to the eye of certain people and corporations as second class citizens and maybe PREY!!!