Maranhão 66

Elected as Maranhão's Governor, José Sarney invites great director Glauber Rocha to film the moment when he takes office and does a marvelous and encouraging speech of game change, something on the lines of making people's lives better.

But Glauber pulls the rug under "his excellency" by contrasting the potent speech of the politician with saddening images covering how miserable the state was, living in poverty and with people waiting for medical assistance that never came. The director's first intention was to cover the elected representant's acceptance speech; but the second intent, which at first seems to point a before/after election, has the utility of showing us that the new boss is the same as the old boss and nothing will change. And it didn't. At the time governor of the state, Sarney would become President of the nation after the death of the first president after 21 years of regime, and his family practically owns Maranhão.

Why you should watch this? It's filmmaking at its greatest, Glauber is an amazing technician, a true artist who knows his craftsmanship and observes things as they are. His poetic almost maddening speeches are absent, he's silent here allowing the images of people laying on hospital beds, hopeful crowds testifying Sarney's big moment and all, let those images speak for themselves. Sadly, the director didn't lived long enough to see the man become president, otherwise he'd make a movie about it the same way he did this short documentary, another great critical piece. The great Maranhão shouted by this politician never existed. 9/10

In 1966, this was a great short movie, by a superb director, showing the differences between a politician's speech and people's reality.

But today, after almost 50 years, and knowing who that young politician José Sarney became, this not only a great short movie, but the best lesson on politics, history and art you can get.

Sarney's speech became a fine piece of irony, considering his career in politics, and how he practiced everything but what he was preaching. Also, Maranhão's issues that are portrayed in the movie are still prevailing nowadays. In only 10 minutes, Glauber Rocha was able to create a perfect work that makes everybody rethink about the meaning of politics and power.