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I'm Still Here

Walter Salles directs this true story of Brazil's military regime and the people they 'disappeared'. It's mostly set in 1970/71 in Rio de Janeiro and focusses on the Paiva family, which consists of a fairly well-off father, mother and five kids.

The first third of the film is all set-up. We're introduced to the family, their group of friends, their housekeeper, the local beach, it's a great, leisurely paced buildup. All throughout this opening though, there's a hint of intrigue - late night phone calls to the father, Rubens (Selton Mello); people off-camera popping in to pick up things; talk of envelopes; glimpses of army trucks driving along the beach road. Foreboding embedded.

The family's middle-class idyll is blown apart one day when some humourless bastards arrive at the house to escort Rubens away to 'give a deposition'. Rubens' wife, Eunice is obviously worried but shows a calm exterior, mindful of her children, especially the younger ones. There's some real menace in the way the army guys placidly enter the house and stay for days, before also whisking Eunice and the second oldest daughter, Eliana, away for questioning.

Director Walter Salles and writers Murillo Hauser and Heitor Lorega (adapting from the book by the son in the story, Marcelo Paiva) have imbued the film with great pathos, particularly in how the regime's crimes affected the loved ones of those killed or missing. Fucking blood-boiling stuff.

Fernanda Torres is superb as Eunice, she lands just the right balance of equanimity and rage. It's her film, though all the performances are on point, especially Luiza Kosovski as Eliana. There's also a nice appearance by Torres' real life mother, Fernanda Montenegro (who once starred in Salles' Central Station).

It's quite a lengthy runtime (about 2 hours 15 mins), and maybe could have done with being a bit tighter, but I didn't mind spending time with this family. It's a sad watch, but it gets the power of the message across. A journalist asks the older Eunice late in the film if the current government should maybe focus more on the future than the past but is kindly rebuked. A timely message.

I'm Still Here opened today (Feb 27) at Luna and Palace cinemas in WA.

See also:

Hector Babenco's Kiss of the Spider Woman (1985) deals with similar stuff, and Juan José Campanella's The Secret in Their Eyes (2009) covers the same ground, but in Argentina.

MINOR SPOILERS IN POD!!

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