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Thursday 3 September 2015

The Second Mother (Que Horas Ela Volta?), Film, Brazil (2015), written and directed by Anna Muylaert, 8* out of 10

Director Anna Muylaert has managed to meld an acutely observed study of the upper middle class urban Brazilian household with an ultimately uplifting tale of courage and emancipation. Regina Casé’s performance is a tour de force. 

Val (Regina Casé) works as a live-in housemaid for an upper middle-class Brazilian family in Sao Paolo. She has been with the family for many years. 17-year-old Fabinho (Michel Joesas) whom Val has looked after while his mother Barbara (Karine Teles) launched a successful business career, is devoted to her. Barbara is married to Carlos (Lourenço Mutarelli), whose inherited wealth allows the family to live well, but who appears frustrated and unhappy. Val who is originally from Pernambuco in the north of Brazil, has left her daughter Jessica (Camila Márdila) with relatives to whom she regularly sends money, but out of guilt she has not seen or spoken to her 17-year-old daughter for 10 years. But as Jessica announces she is coming to stay with Val to prepare for the difficult admission exam to university of Sao Paolo, the Val’s life and her employers’ household are in for some unexpected turbulence.

The Second Mother is a slow and atmospheric film. It beautifully shows the relationship of the different protagonists as individuals living in a confined space of one household. And in acutely observes the Brazil of the 21st century, where the social rules of interaction between “upstairs” and “downstairs” are present and known to all who live within. The camera shows the action mainly from the perspective of the household staff. Director Anna Muylaert has managed to meld an acutely observed study of the upper middle class urban Brazilian household with an ultimately uplifting tale of courage and emancipation, in which all the protagonists are flawed but some are flawed heroes, non more so than Val. 

Among a competent cast, Regina Casé’s performance as a formally uneducated housemaid, who is woman with her feet on the ground and an irrepressible good humour and optimism is a wonderful tour de force thanks also to Camila Márdila, who shines in the role of Jessica.

Go see this is a little jewel of human and social observation; it fully deserves the prizes it has received at the Sundance and the Berlin Film Festival.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt3742378/










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