Bye Bye Brasil

It is a precious gem. The story of the Caravana Rolidei, a group of poor traveling circus performers, is as fresh today as the first time I saw it. The caravan travels in the Brazilian countryside in a time where television is taking over and making all other sorts of entertainment obsolete. Very touching, very Brazilian, very easy to find in your video store.

At last, a film I can unreservedly recommend--well, at least to adults.

"Bye Bye Brazil" is a film with heart, involving three-dimensional characters I was able to care about, their stories told unpretentiously in a straightforward exposition unhindered by self-conscious special effects, confusing games with the time-frame, etc. as in so many "artistic" films I've been watching lately (and in some cases ejecting from the player before they're finished).

Too bad this film is from 1979. I wish it were brand new, so I could hope for a return to these plain and honest values in film-making.

As soon as I saw that the title song was sung by Chico Buarque, one of my very favorite musicians, I suspected I was in for a pleasant evening, and I wasn't disappointed. The movie would be worth buying (apparently available on VHS only) just for that wonderful song, sung in its lengthy entirety over the closing credits, and briefly at the film's commencement. But "Bye Bye Brazil" offers much more than a pretty (and very funny) song. Time and again I was reminded of Bergman's films, as the interplay between the five chief characters developed. There's a certain visual resemblance to some of Bergman's scenes, too.

You could have a worse model.

Highly recommended--though not for kids.

SYNOPSIS: A small band of circus performers drift through the hinterlands of 1970s Brazil looking for opportunity and freedom.

CONCEPT IN RELATION TO THE VIEWER: Escaping your everyday life and throwing caution to the wind to chase your dreams. Only to find out that your dreams aren't what you thought and that there is a big difference between lust and love.

PROS AND CONS: This is an interesting film on several levels. It shows a part of the world that is quickly disappearing. The idea that you can run off into undeveloped country and live off your wits and the kindness / stupidity of others is quickly fading in modern society. That wasn't the case in 1970s Brazil where the vast interior was full or opportunity and little else.

In this film a young man and his pregnant wife flee the poverty of rural Brazil to join the CARNIVAL ROLIDEI, a rag-tag group consisting of a charismatic con man, his dancer / prostitute girlfriend and a mute strong-man. They travel the dirt roads of Brazil, seeking peasants that are easily entertained by their simple tricks and lusty burlesque shows. Along the way, the young man and his wife come to question their fidelity and their expectations about life and one another.

The film is shot on location and the performances are very good. There is a surreal quality to the imagery that owes a tip of the hat to Federico Fellini. There is also something about the Porteguese language that is very lyrical, especially the title song that is heard throughout the film and over the end credits.

The underlying message is that freedom is not an easy thing to find. Escaping from the trappings of modern society, escaping from the trappings of your own lifestyle and the escape from the ones you love is almost impossible. None of these characters wants to be tied down, but they are tied to the desires that are at their core. They all learn from each other in the end.

This film reminds me why I have the desire to take off and see new lands where I have never been and be amazed at the unknown that I have never seen, and why in the end, I always return to my home, where I feel safe.

This fantastic movie tell the history of a small caravan of artists that crosses an immense area inside Brazil accomplishing circus shows for simple and poor people. In the road, a couple of beggars that escapes from the drought of the northeast of Brazil associates to the group, and they are going all to seek the wealth and the success in new " Eldorado Brasileiro ": the Amazonian. A film human but also controversial, with a fort social content, that treats of problematic themes of the Brazilian reality: the social poverty, the migration and the environmental destruction.

Bye Bye, Brasil (1980) is a letter to Brazilians, literally. In the end of the film a phrase appears: "Ao povo brasileiro do século XXI", which means: "To the brazilian people of 21st century". I understand that there are two meanings for this phrase. First, Carlos (Cacá) Diegues, director and writer, meant that in the 21st century technological devices regarding movies and shows would be different and more common in Brazilian houses, so the movie is a historical log of the transition from radio to TV in poor zones in Brazil. Second, he was being ironic in terms of social issues. He knew that Brazil haven't progressed as much as people expected in these matters. So he predicted that what the movie explores: dishonesty, corruption, illiteracy, prostitution (as a social consequence), land problems and other themes would continue. The film is a parameter. Unfortunately, he was/is right and that's why the movie hits hard sometimes. The social critics are made naturally throughout the narrative, through the main characters and other people that appear in their journey. Though there is this strong drama side, there is also another one... There are many funny moments and memorable jokes, essentialy, because of José Wilker's character, Lorde Cigano (Gypsy Lord), who is the leader of the Caravana Rolidei group (like a mini circus). Wilker totally steals the attention with his charm, charisma and rascal way of being. By the way, this is a very common representation of Brazilians in Brazil and abroad, which is also a social issue and is probably an implicit critic by Cacá.

Everything about this film is well thought out, the plot and the screenplay, as I previously showed, the clothes and sets are very realistic (on location shooting) as well as the acting. I highlight, besides Wilker, Betty Faria, who created a very complex and interesting character.

Although the movie is a letter to Brazilians, I totally recommend this movie for foreigners. I think that, in this globalized 21st century world, we can understand a lot each other reality and comprehend messages like Diegues' one.