L'autre côté de la rue

Fernanda Montenegro, the Brazilian national acting treasure who starred in Walter Salles's 1998 international hit, "Central Station," returns in the role of Regina, a long divorced, trim and plucky woman who sees no reason why aging should render people as either "old, crippled or idiots" as she candidly puts it to another older woman.

Like a lot of well off aging women in the area, Regina dutifully walks her dog Betina along Rio's Copacabana Beach each morning and dotes on her preschool age grandson. But she also spends her time these days as one of several volunteer undercover informers in "Senior Service," a special program to assist the local police.

Her code name is "Snow White" and she has never been wrong in fingering suspects for her leader, Detective Alcides. She hangs out in disco clubs where drug deals are made and other places that are more than a tad dangerous for anybody.

But Regina goes too far when one night she observes through her binoculars a man in an apartment across the street from her place giving what appears to be a lethal injection to a woman. It turns out the man is an important judicial official in the government, and Det. Alcides fires Regina for getting him in trouble after he sends officers to the judge's apartment to investigate the death of his wife, who, it turns out, was dying of cancer.

Matters take a different turn when Regina sets things up to begin a relationship with the judge, Camargo (Raul Cortez), in order to get the goods on him, only to find herself drifting toward a romantic attachment to his man. The judge's movement from suspect to lover in Regina's estimation occurs in an entirely convincing manner.

The screenplay, based on a story by the director, Marcos Bernstein, who also co-wrote the script for "Central Station" and makes his directorial debut here. The film is almost without exception well crafted, the dialogue sparkling. Ms. Montenegro, who was 74 when this film was shot, is enchanting: think of the Italian actress Giulietta Masina but with more of an edge. Mr. Cortez is more than adequate playing opposite her. (In Portuguese) My rating: 8/10 (B+). (Seen on 02/15/05). If you'd like to read more of my reviews, send me a message for directions to my websites.

I just saw this film here in NYC...where to begin. I don't see why it garnered so much praise from film festivals. The pace was extremely sluggish, the were no real plot points to speak of, and the dialogue was not that good.

There were some cute moments, but they are not enough to prop this film up or make a story. The characters have no backstory (or very little), and we have no reason to care about them. Some of the ideas of the script could have been used to fashion a story about something, a detective story perhaps, but as it is, no dice. I'd pass on this one. The minutes dragged like hours, I kept waiting for something to happen, but it never did. Oh, and it was full of "moody moments" (I hate those), where the camera focuses on the character, who supposedly is experiencing something internally (we don't know what), and mood music...it was depressing! The story didn't even make it off the runway.

Regina, played by Fernanda Montenegro, is an older woman with firm opinions about people and life. Retired, estranged from family, and living with a pet dog, she spends her days (and nights) as a police volunteer reporting criminal activity near her home, a large apartment tower across from Copacabana beach.

The work gives Regina gives purpose and meaning to any otherwise empty life. Much of her success is likely due to the fact that in a neighborhood crowded with young, beautiful people, an elderly woman is practically invisible.

One day she sees a man kill his wife. When the police refuse to act, Regina decides to investigate on her own. The quiet story that follows is engaging, surprising, and full of insights into the life of the elderly.

7/10

Foreign film moviegoers who appreciated "Central Station" 1998 from director Walter Salles will definitely once again enjoy Fernanda Montenegro in another Brazilian gem, a small one, perhaps, nevertheless, " Outro Lado Da Rua, O" 2004 aka "The Other Side of the Street" from director Marcos Bernstein (who also wrote the story), is a worthy film for wider recognition.

It does remind one of Hitchcock's "Rear Window," yet Regina, the heroine of the story in her sixties, energetically portrayed by Montenegro, is dutifully observing 'the other side of the street' through her binoculars vs. from the 'rear' of her building. And, this is not exactly a thriller, it's very much a human story: of two lonely people who needed to open up, reach out to touch someone and be touched. By circumstance or by fate, the human spirit at heart, quietly beckons to be rekindled. What's old age? Youthfulness is how comfortable you feel about yourself - let go of burdens and welcome - let love walk in.

Sounds 'corny,' maybe. So say one of Emily Dickinson's 'trimeter' epigrams: "The heart wants what it wants - or else it does not care -" Bernstein's story is sensitive, tender, witty, very much captures the predicaments of the two lead characters. And the music by Guilherme Bernstein Seixas accompanied the scenes well, as if the rhythm and musical notes understood the situation of these two: Regina and Camargo, the retired judge across the street, played wonderfully by Raul Cortez.

I noticed cable Sundance Channel has aired this Brazilian gem several times already. It is available on DVD (1 hr. 38 min.) Check it out and quietly enjoy.

Writer Marcos Bernstein ('Central Station') takes a step forward as Director of yet another soulful and touching film about aging and the loneliness and isolation that surrounds our older generations. Together with Melanie Dimantas he has written a story that is not only intriguing as a suspense tale, but it is also one of the most moving love stories between older people that has graced the screen.

Regina (Fernanda Montenegro) lives alone with her devoted dog Betina, her only visits to family are with her grandson: she rarely sees her son's home as her son is still friends with her estranged husband. Regina has found a hobby to fill her days - she has become a volunteer police informant for the Copacabano police, visiting bars where drug deals are rampant and then reporting the findings to the police. Her high-rise apartment faces another like apartment across the street and she spends her idle hours watching her neighbors through binoculars, not in a snoopy way but as a manner of relieving her boredom of solitude.

One evening she observes an older man give an lethal injection to his wife, and thinking she has observed a murder she notifies the police who respond, only to discover the older man is Judge Carmago (Raul Cortez) and thus dismiss the intrusion as a false call by Regina. Regina knows what she saw and despite the abuse she receives from the policeman Alcides (Luiz Carlos Persy) she is intent on investigating the 'crime'. She stalks Carmago and eventually Carmago confronts her behavior, stating that if she has questions of him she should join him for lunch or dinner. The two lonely older people gradually get to know each other and a relationship ensues that surprises them both. Regina's shell of emotional protection is cracked and the two explore the vulnerability of feelings usually reserved for the young. How Regina's life is altered by this adventure makes for an illuminating finale to the film.

Fernanda Montenegro is luminous as Regina. She is an actress in her late seventies who is able to invoke tremendous responses from an audience, so multifaceted are her talents. Raul Cortez likewise is a veteran actor (his first film was in 1957) who has depth of character and technique that makes his role gleam. This film is a brave one, a film unafraid to address delicate issues about love among the elderly and achieve a stunning level of dignity and discretion that binds the viewer to the story. The atmosphere is enhanced by the minimal music score from Guilherme Bernstein Seixas and by the clever cinematography of Toca Seabra. This is a lovely film that should appeal to all audiences, especially those who fell in love with Fernanda Montenegro in 'Central Station'. Grady Harp