Review by claudio_carvalho

In São Paulo, the lonely forty and something year-old guitar teacher Baby (Glória Pires) lives a tedious life in a low middle-class apartment and is addicted in her only companion, the cigarettes. She has a constant friction with her two sisters, the executive Pop (Marisa Orth) and the housewife Teca (Daniela Nefussi), because of the inheritance of the couch of their deceased Aunt Dinah. When the musician of a barbecue place Max (Paulo Miklos) moves to the next-door apartment, Baby has a crush on him. Sooner they have a love affair and Baby quits smoking with the support of a fellowship. However the insecure Baby feels jealous with the relationship of Max with his former woman Estelinha (Alessandra Colassanti) that keeps stalking him. One night, Baby follows Estelinha and when she leaves the building, Baby accidentally hits her; the hit- and-run Baby calls 911 but Estelinha dies. When the doorman Chico watches the tape of the surveillance camera, he hides the VHS tape from the police. Meanwhile Max moves to Baby's apartment and she lives a conflictive situation.

The awarded "É Proibido Fumar" has a simple but realistic story of loneliness, neediness, jealousy and obsession supported by the tight direction of Anna Muylaert and great performances of Glória Pires and Paulo Miklos. The screenplay uses an acid black humor with the hypocrite situation of Baby and Max that know what the other did but never disclose the truth to the other and the doorman Chico has a short but important role in the story. Last June, 8th, this independent film was awarded with five prizes (Best Fiction Feature, Best Director, Original Screenplay, Music Score and Edition of Fiction) in the Grande Premio do Cinema Brasileiro ("Great Prize of the Brazilian Cinema") in the Teatro João Caetano, Rio de Janeiro. Congratulations to the director, writer, cast and crew of this feature. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "É Proibido Fumar" ("No Smoking")