By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 4 cats
Director: Juliano Dornelles | Kleber Mendonça Filho
Starring: Bárbara Colen | Silvero Pereira | Sonia Braga | Thardelly Lima | Thomas Aquino
Country: brazil, france
Year: 2020
Running time: 131
IMDB: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2762506/reference
Chris says: “Kleber Mendonça Filho’s previous film AQUARIUS was an ideal vehicle for actress Sonia Braga who played a woman fighting to keep real estate developers from decimating her longtime home. In this follow-up (co-directed with Juliano Dornelles), Braga has a smaller but still pivotal role as a doctor in the rural Brazilian village that gives the film its title.
“More of an ensemble piece, BACURAU almost defies categorization. It references a variety of classic films but rarely does so blatantly. It gradually reveals itself as a neo-take on one particular genre, but it’s best to come into it not knowing what that is. If a fervent chaos flitted loosely around the edges of AQUARIUS, here it burrows deeper and deeper into both the film’s narrative and moral code (especially once Udo Kier’s onscreen), surfacing in often thrilling ways–a drunken speech at a funeral, an unexpectedly brutal death, an appearance of a drone made to resemble a UFO, a certain 80s pop song on the soundtrack (also too good to give away here.) BACURAU is bold, slightly erratic, gorgeous and, of all things, nearly as tuned into the modern world and its growing social-economic divide as PARASITE. 4.5 cats”
Michael says: “After reading heaps of praise, both from Chlotrudis members and other film critics alike, I decided to give BACURAU a shot, despite being cautioned about its violent elements. I’m glad I watched it, and appreciated what the filmmakers were going for, the final third of the film left me pretty cold, and overall threw a wet blanket on an otherwise compelling film. Theresa returns home to Bacurau, a small village in rural Brazil to celebrate the passing of the town matriarch, her grandmother. The town comes out in force for a night of celebration that is only disrupted by one drunken outburst by Domingas, another village elder, and the town physician. As Theresa reconnects with family and friends, we learn that the village has been cut off from greater civilization, the dams closed, forcing daily water deliveries to be made, and the town under strange surveillance by small UFO-looking drones. When their village suddenly disappears from Google maps, and a sudden act of violence is discovered at a nearby farm, the villagers begin to prepare for something terrible. This first half to two-thirds of the film is interesting in the way it depicts life in the village, a resistance to corporate pressures, and a community filled with traditions and connections that are slowly being eroded away by political interests, as witnessed by a visit form the slick official seeking re-election in the district. When the film switches over to an American, paramilitary outfit that has arrived for some nefarious purpose that is never fully explained, the film starts to slide downhill. I would have rather the villainous element remain somewhat mysterious or at least undefined. I had no interest in spending time with these characters, and their motivations didn’t interest me.
Bob says: :Something’s going on in the remote Brazilian town of Bacurau. Water’s been scarce since corrupt politicians cut off the supply. The mayor of the next town over thinks he has the right to do whatever he wants to the women of Bacurau. Since the local martriarch died, the town has disappeared from the map and cell service has vanished. But Bacurau has a proud history of a sort, and luckily, there doesn’t seem to be a shortage of coffins.
There’s some fun play with genre going on here. The film’s not quite a western, but it owes a tip of the hat to some of Kurosawa’s samurai films (which were turned into westerns, of course), but there’s an outright effort to identify it as a cult film (which I know isn’t a genre — more of a spirit). I mean, Udo Kier shows up. Say no more.”
Diane says: “Michael, you may indeed be in the minority on this one. BACURAU gets 5 cats from me, and I’m grateful to those who kept bringing it up as one to see. The story, which goes in so many directions, is told with precision, and even the minor characters are distinctly drawn. From the very first scene—when a driver says to his jolted-awake passenger, “Look up ahead!,” and the camera counterintuitively frames the passenger instead of what we want to see, the camerawork is masterful. At the 3/4 mark, there is a black screen for several seconds and I was grateful for the chance to exhale. Just superb.”