Review by hof-4

Florianópolis is a summer resort and vacation spot on the Brazilian coast, popular not only with locals but also among tourists from Uruguay and Argentina. As the movie opens, Lucrecia and Pedro, a couple from Buenos Aires and their adolescent children are stuck on the road In their dusty vehicle, out of gasoline. They receive help from a Brazilian couple, Larisa and Marco driving in the same direction. Their vacation begins inauspiciously; they have to spend the first night in a fleabag motel and, when the reach the house they had agreed to rent, they find it inhabitable. Marco helps again: he procures the family a house that, although near the beach, is far from the road; it has to be reached walking past a stream and following a wooded path.

There is an uncomfortable feeling in the family. Lucrecia and Pedro are in an indefinite state of separation, although they still share some family ceremonies. The children are obviously too grown up to appreciate a vacation in family, although one senses that everybody knows or suspects that this is the last family outing. Liberated from the constraints of their regular city life, they all look for a sentimental out, but liaisons, as usual, don't last beyond the end of the vacation. There is a twist at the end, but not really surprising

There have been dozens of movies on the subject of conflicted family vacations and this film doesn't contribute any original or unexpected touch. On the positive side, it is easy to watch and entertaining.