karenatasha

O Pai O veers wildly between genres, and the end simply falls into melodrama and fails.

My only disagreement with the Debblys's (sorry if I misspelled) comment above is that I do think much of the musical soundtrack is good--although not always well-sung by the characters. Caetano Veloso's title song over the end credits (the film is produced by his ex-wife Paula Lavigne) is particularly appealing and catchy. Still, just because I love Bahia so much, I had fun looking at familiar places and listening to the music. I just wish the film had been better. Monique Gartenberg has done some excellent concert videos, but she didn't succeed here.

Sure, there's much to say about the economic inequality that has turned Sao Paulo into a violent city. But Manda Bala isn't the place to hear it. Yes, there are facts that will shock anyone thoroughly unfamiliar with Brazil's political and social problems--and even some that might surprise those who are. But it's the treatment of these issues that is so poor. The focus is on the most exploitative, gut-wrenching images rather than on true analysis, and the director doesn't have the insight to conduct a truly incisive interview.

Plus, it's not well done as a documentary--those images may be stomach-churning but not necessarily well-composed or interesting in and of themselves. And the editing leaves a lot to be desired too. At only 85 minutes, it feels way longer.

This documentary is a must for anyone interested in Brazilian music or culture in general. It's beautifully made and structured, a wonderful mix of performance, storytelling, and biography, and worthy of the man who inspired it. Vinicius De Moraes was an outstanding poet, playwright,and lyricist, best known to most of the world as the writer of the play on which the movie "Black Orpheus" is based, as well as the co-composer of "Girl from Ipanema." Many of the top figures in Brazilian music are here--Chico Buarque, Caetano Veloso, Maria Bethania, Toquinho--contributing personal and often very funny stories. Interspersed with these interviews are two actors, who "host" it all, reading Vinicius's poetry and presenting the outlines of his life. And, to finish it off, an array of Brazil's major singers performs his songs on stage, in front of an audience. Every moment is enjoyable. Re the comment on the translation, above: My Portuguse is not perfect and I'm sure I missed some things, but the particular example she chose is not so much a matter of translation as of spelling. Almost any native English speaker will realize the mistake instantly and substitute the correct word because of context. Non-Portuguese speakers should not let it deter them from seeing this film--if they can find it. I saw it at a special program on recent Brazilian film offered by the Museum of Modern Art, and it has not yet been released, either in general theaters or on DVD. I hope that will be remedied soon.