O Ano em Que Meus Pais Saíram de Férias (2006)

Director:

Cao Hamburger

Writers:

Adriana Falcão (script collaborator)
Claudio Galperin (writer)

Release Date:

2 November 2006 (Brazil)

Genre:

Drama

Plot:

A boy is left alone in a Jewish neighborhood in the year of 1970, where both world cup and dictatorship happen in Brazil.

Plot Keywords:

Jewish | 1970s | World Cup | São Paulo | Brazil

Awards:

21 wins & 19 nominations

Cast

Michel Joelsas	...	Mauro
Germano Haiut	...	Shlomo
Paulo Autran	...	Mótel, Mauro's grandfather
Simone Spoladore	...	Bia - Mauro's mother
Eduardo Moreira	...	Daniel, Mauro's father
Caio Blat	...	Ítalo
Daniela Piepszyk	...	Hanna
Liliana Castro	...	Irene
Rodrigo dos Santos	...	Edgar
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Felipe Hanna Braun	...	Caco
Gabriel Eric Bursztein	...	Bóris
Abrahão Farc	...	Anatol
Haim Fridman	...	Duda
Gérson	...	Himself (archive footage)
Edu Guimarães	...	Alfredo
Jairzinho	...	Himself (archive footage)
David Kullock
Sérgio Mastropasqua	...	Man #2
Pelé	...	Himself (archive footage)
Rivelino	...	Himself (archive footage)
João Saldanha	...	Himself (archive footage)
Hugueta Sendacz	...	Dona Eidel
Tostão	...	Himself (archive footage)

Also Known As:

The Year My Parents Went on Vacation (International: English title)

MPAA:

Rated PG for thematic material, mild language, brief suggestive content, some violence and smoking.

Runtime:

Brazil:104 min (theatrical and DVD) | Brazil:110 min | Argentina:104 min | Germany:104 min (Berlin International Film Festival)

Country:

Brazil

Language:

Portuguese | Yiddish | German

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Brazil:10 | Netherlands:6 | Switzerland:7 (canton of Vaud) | Switzerland:7 (canton of Geneva) | France:Unrated | USA:PG | Canada:PG (Ontario) | Argentina:13 | Singapore:PG

Filming Locations:

Bom Retiro, São Paulo, Brazil

Company:

Gullane Filmes

Trivia:

Brazil's Official Submission to the Best Foreign Language Film Category of the 80th Annual Academy Awards (2008).

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Chacun son cinéma ou Ce petit coup au coeur quand la lumière s'éteint et que le film commence (2007)

Soundtrack:

Na Cadência do Samba

Storytelling at its very best.

The premise appears simple, but that's only on surface. Suddenly, the country is divided between the euphoria of the 1970 World Cup (in which Brazil was champion for the third time) and the anguish of the dictatorship. That could be good material for biting social critique, but the movie takes a radically different path. It follows the life of a kid, whose parents are leaving for "vacations". He's left at his grandfather's apartment, only to find out that he died hours before his arrival. Finding himself in the unnatural environment of a Jewish community, having no news about his parents and having to live with a grumpy old man, he finds comfort in football and everything that deals with it.

Fans of the hyperactivity and non-linearity of City Of God will have to expect a completely different style here. While there are flashes of comedy and quirkiness, the movie is very focused and delicately paced. There isn't a lot that can be told here, really, and I won't go on spoiling the story. Check it out for yourself, if only to witness the clashing contrast between two opposite realities in a way no history book could deliver.