Hour of the Star (1986)
"A Hora da Estrela" (original title)

Macabea has just moved to the big city after her aunt, who raised her, died. She gets a job as a typist and moves into a boarding house with three other women. In her spare time she listens... See full summary »

Director:

Suzana Amaral

Writers:

Suzana Amaral, Clarice Lispector (novel),

Stars:

Marcelia Cartaxo, José Dumont, Tamara Taxman

10 wins & 1 nomination.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Marcelia Cartaxo	...	Macabéa
José Dumont	...	Olímpico de Jesus
Tamara Taxman	...	Glória
Fernanda Montenegro	...	Madame Carlota (the macumbeira)
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Manoel Luiz Aranha	...	Photographer
Marli Botoletto	...	Macumba assistant
Denoy de Oliveira	...	Pereira
Maria Do Carmo Soares	...	Maria do Carmo
Walter Filho	...	Man in Mercedes
Sonia Guedes	...	Mrs. Joana
Umberto Magnani	...	Seu Raimundo
Miro Martinez	...	Blind man
Euricio Martins	...	Metro Guard
Raymundo Matos	...	Arnaldo
Dirce Militello	...	Gloria's mother

Storyline

Macabea has just moved to the big city after her aunt, who raised her, died. She gets a job as a typist and moves into a boarding house with three other women. In her spare time she listens to time Radio Station; on Sundays she likes to ride the subways. She describes herself saying, "I am a typist and a virgin, and I like Coca-Cola." Then she meets Olimpico, a north-easterner like herself, who has dreams of becoming a Congressman.

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Plot Keywords:

lack of education | subway | brazil | third world | são paulo brazil | 

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Genres:

Drama

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Details

Country:

Brazil

Language:

Portuguese

Release Date:

March 1987 (USA)

Also Known As:

Hour of the Star

Filming Locations:

São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil

Company Credits

Production Co:

Raíz Produções Cinematográficas

Technical Specs

Runtime:

96 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Quotes

Olimpico: Look, I'll buy you a cup of coffee.
Macabea: With milk?
Olimpico: What?
Macabea: With milk.
Olimpico: OK. But if it costs more you pay the difference.

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Connections

Featured in Panorama: Clarice Lispector

User Reviews

Representation

If you've ever read Lispector's text, Amaral's film is a must-see. You may be wondering how Amaral could possibly manage to capture Lispector's musings on the act of writing or questions regarding representation as they are presented through her narrator, Rodrigo. Pay close attention, and you'll find your answer. Although Rodrigo is absent from the film, he is symbolically present via Amaral's juxtaposition of Macabea's humble life, and the reality that is presented to her within an industrialized society. I personally believe that this is not a representation of the original text, but an appropriation of certain underlying themes within it. As you will see, Amaral manages to give us her own perspective and cultural critique of representation via the artistic medium of which she is a part. In this sense, the film stands alone, independent of the novella, with a few strong threads tying the two together. For anyone who is interested in the question of representation within the cultural industry, commodity fetishism, capitalism, feminism, etc., you need to watch this film, and then you need to watch it again.