Linha de passe (film review)

Went to see Linha de Passe with my wife tonight. Set in Brazil and co-directed by Daniela Thomas and Walter Salles (The Motorcycle Diaries), the story is not always an easy one to watch. The film depicts the daily struggles of a family trapped in Brazil's invisible class. While an expecting single mother tries to keep her family afloat, her 4 sons all have their own ways of surviving the harsh realities of poverty. Each of the main characters has a different mode of escapism, ranging from football to alcohol to Christian fundamentalism. At times they compromise their values and make choices that lead to more dire circumstances. It's hard to watch people make poor decisions.

Daniela Thomas was present at the screening and spoke both before and after the film. On being asked about the limited use of music/sound during the film's more tense moments, Thomas informed the audience that although she didn't realize it during the shoot, the film is in many ways a suspense. If I had posed a question to Daniela I probably would've asked her about how the cast was put together. She had mentioned prior to the film's showing that a number of cast members were not professional actors. The cast was impressive. I was not surprised to later read that Sandra Corveloni (who played the maternal role of Cleuza) had won best actress at Cannes earlier this year.