O Auto da Compadecida (2000)

User Rating:

8.1/10   

Director:

Guel Arraes

Writers:

Guel Arraes (writer)
Adriana Falcão (writer)

Release Date:

10 September 2000 (Brazil)

Genre:

Adventure | Comedy | Drama | Romance

Plot:

The lively João Grilo and the sly Chicó are poor guys living in the hinterland who cheat a bunch of people in a small Northeast Brazil town...

Plot Keywords:

Virgin Mary | Brazil | Devil | Jesus Christ | Screwball

Awards:

7 wins & 2 nominations

Cast

Matheus Nachtergaele	...	João Grilo
Selton Mello	...	Chicó
Rogério Cardoso	...	Padre João
Denise Fraga	...	Dora
Diogo Vilela	...	Padeiro Eurico
Luís Melo	...	Diabo
Virginia Cavendish	...	Rosinha
Bruno Garcia	...	Vicentão
Enrique Diaz	...	Capanga
Maurício Gonçalves	...	Jesus Cristo
Aramis Trindade	...	Cabo Setenta
Marco Nanini	...	Cangaceiro Severino
Paulo Goulart	...	Major A. Moraes
Lima Duarte	...	Bispo
Fernanda Montenegro	...	Compadecida

Also Known As:

A Dog's Will (International: English title)

Runtime:

104 min

Country:

Brazil

Language:

Portuguese

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Singapore:R21 | Finland:K-15 (TV rating) | Australia:M | Brazil:Livre

Filming Locations:

Cabaceiras, Paraíba, Brazil

Company:

Globo Filmes

Movie Connections:

Spin off from "O Auto da Compadecida" (1999)

It's folklore

When the 4-chapter mini-series was announced by Globo network, few people expected it to be THAT good, for the simple reason that nothing that good had been done in Brazilian television in the previous 15 years. The adaptation is efficient, departing very little from Cabral de Mello Neto's text and mood, the direction, scenography and art direction are beautiful, the humour is well balanced with adventure and drama, everything works well. But the real treat you get watching this is Nachtergale's performance as Joao Grilo. This is the production that made everyone agree that he is the best actor of his generation by a mile. Let me talk a little of what the story is about. It is not really a 'fantasy' of the writer as some American viewers (understandably) thought. The play's proposal is to be an adaptation of several texts from the tradition of 'cordel literature', typical of the Brazilian northeast (where the play is set). Those texts are mostly long poems that translate the folklore of that region. It is, of course, a very catholic area, but in a very peculiar way. Jesus ('Manuel'), Mary ('the Merciful') and the devil ARE common characters of those folk stories, and they are as 'accessibile' to people as the movie shows in Brazilian Folklore. Also from 'Cordel literature' comes the character of 'Joao Grilo'. Anyone who sees this movie and don't know Grilo should watch for Shakespeare's 'Henry IV' (the character Falstaff) and Moliere's 'Scapino'. It is sort of a universal character – the court's fool, and doesn't belong to Arraes, Mello Neto or even to Brazilian Folklore. So it is not really someone's fantasy – it is the fantasy of an anonymous collective, the people from Brazil's northeastern 'sertao'. It is a great movie anyway, I just thought people would like to know the background.