Saneamento Básico, O Filme

I saw this movie at the "2ª Mostra de Cinema Brasileiro" in Lisbon, Portugal. On that day, all the movies played were directed by Jorge Furtado. I'd already seen "O Homem que Copiava" (on DVD in Portugal) and "Meu Tio Matou um Cara" (on DVD in Brazil) and enjoyed them a lot, so i was ready for some more. I invited some friends to come along. The result was extremely positive. We all laughed out hard, along with the rest of the audience that filled the cinema (São Jorge). It's a lightweight comedy, low-budget, with great acting, an original plot and, of course, some political and social criticism about the "system". But ultimately, it's a fun, feel good and intelligent movie... unlike something stupid/unfunny and 1000 x bigger budget like "Evan Almighty", which I saw yesterday. I would compare this movie with a Portuguese movie that also came out on 2007 "Dot.com", which i also highly recommend.

Unfortunately, other Portuguese country fellows who didn't had the opportunity to see this film at this festival, will never make to see it. The movie wasn't released on cinema, and probably will not be released on DVD either. "O Homem que Copiava", actually was released on DVD in Portugal, but "Meu Tio Matou um Cara" (as well as many other good Brazilian titles) wasn't. One of the many misfits of piracy, drying the funds necessary for the distribution of good movies that are not necessarily "blockbusters"... :(

A delightful movie and one of the many magnificent cinematic works that Brazil provides us.

The film takes place in a small town where there have been constant sewage problems for a few months, due to government negligence. For this reason, our protagonist Marina joins her husband to resolve the entire situation at the city hall and request more attention from them.

Being a small town, Marina is informed that the city hall has no budget to start the sewage project; however, there will be a contest in which the winner will receive 10 thousand reais just for making a movie, money that would go directly to the city hall and enable the progress of the project.

The work continues with Marina and her family creating the film with great effort and determination. If this plot discouraged you, don't be fooled; it happened to me too, but it's worth watching... despite the simple and uninteresting theme, the work is full of humor and keeps you engaged until the end.

Hmm, let's see: one of the main characters doesn't know the meaning of the word "fiction", although she went through college and masters concepts like genetic mutation. Another character is cultured enough to have a Gustav Klimt poster on his wall, though he is ignorant to the point of throwing a beer can in a water fall inside his own estate during one of the innumerable scenes and dialogues that don't have any connection to the plot. Does the director, producers and writer really think these characters are believable? Actor's maneirisms are the same as seen on TV soap operas. Local extras that made into some of the scenes were certainly added to give a "southern feel" to the movie, but they generally sit still like mummies and never utter a word.

Fortunately, for non Brazilian viewers many of the weakest points in this film will remain unnoticed (like the fake southern accents), that is, if this film is ever going to be watched outside Brazil.

I am giving it five stars since the movie made an attempt at straying the focus from the tiresome working class approaches that are predominant in Brazilian movies, but "Saneamento Básico" still falls short on several other aspects. Try again.

Some people decided to make a movie to draw the mayor's attention to a local problem. A silly idea, a funny execution... but don't get me wrong, this movie is actually very good!

I want to highlight the structure of the screenplay and how the people relate to each other (what fits together). There are basically eight main characters, and speaking as a writer, I know that to introduce all of them as well as Jorge Furtado did is a big challenge. The screenplay of this movie presents them through creative situations, including some that may sound a bit "disconnected" from the rest of the story... and THAT'S exactly the point. Jorge wasn't afraid to write a scene that "interrupts" the narrative because he knew that it was the best way.

The characters are the main reason you should see this movie. They all carry the story on their back, they all are alive and funny. Basic Sanitation is a film that deserves to be studied, no matter how silly it is.

Although limited and uneventful at a first glance, this movie is able to touch some of the most compelling aspects of becoming a filmmaker in Brazil, namely the lack of support from public or private means and the trickled access to culture as a whole, all the while making fun of the usual neglect directed to the marginalized.

It is also worth of note that this movie is a absolute melting pot of charisma and creativity, being a mix of some noteworthy performances from relatively unknown actors and a showcase of the many talents we would later see in others, such as Fernanda Torres, Wagner Moura and Lázaro Ramos, although their characters can seem undeniably shallow at times, mostly due to the heavily cut dialogue.

So, this movie does not excel as a comedy nor as a critic, being a subpar addition in comparison to other more popular Brazilian films. Yet, it is a worthy and curious footnote in the history of Brazilian cinema, and a good reminder of our ability to try things that seem impossible with the little we may have.