O Que É Isso, Companheiro? (1997)

Director:

Bruno Barreto

Writers:

Fernando Gabeira (novel)
Leopoldo Serran (writer)

Release Date:

30 January 1998 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Drama | History | Thriller

Tagline:

Their goal: freedom. Their only hope: an international incident. Their target: the American ambassador.

Plot:

Fernando, a journalist, and his friend César join terrorist group MR8 in order to fight Brazilian dictatorial regime during the late sixties...

Plot Keywords:

Brazil | Ambassador | Political Repression | Rio De Janeiro Brazil | Newspaper

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar. Another 2 wins & 3 nominations

Cast

Alan Arkin	...	Charles Burke Elbrick
Fernanda Torres	...	Maria
Pedro Cardoso	...	Fernando Gabeira / Paulo
Luiz Fernando Guimarães	...	Marcão
Cláudia Abreu	...	Reneé
Nelson Dantas	...	Toledo
Matheus Nachtergaele	...	Jonas
Marco Ricca	...	Henrique
Maurício Gonçalves	...	Brandão
Caio Junqueira	...	Julio
Selton Mello	...	Oswaldo
Eduardo Moscovis	...	Artur
Caroline Kava	...	Elvira Elbrick
Fisher Stevens	...	Mowinkel
Fernanda Montenegro	...	Dona Margarida

Also Known As:

Four Days in September (USA)
Four Days in September (O Que É Isso Companheiro?) (UK) (TV title)

MPAA:

Rated R for some language and violence.

Runtime:

110 min

Country:

Brazil | USA

Language:

Portuguese | English

Color:

Color

Sound Mix:

Dolby SR

Certification:

Iceland:12 | Netherlands:12 | Argentina:13 | Brazil:12 | Chile:14 | Finland:K-12 | France:U | Mexico:C | Peru:14 | USA:R | Singapore:PG

Filming Locations:

Ponto Filmes, Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Company:

Columbia Pictures Television Trading Company

Trivia:

Title in Portuguese ("O que é isso, companheiro?") means "What's up, fella?". It refers to a dialog of the novel, said in answer when a character tells he is afraid. "Companheiro" is a treatment used between members of the left wing. Brazil's president Lula uses to call "companheiro" to a minister or even to a friend.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Casseta & Planeta: A Taça do Mundo É Nossa (2003)

Soundtrack:

Madalena foi pro mar

Thank my lucky horseshoe

The year is 1969. Brazil is under a brutal military dictatorship. Political prisoners are being held and tortured. In order to get the junta to free some of their comrades, a group of ragtag "revolutionaries" kidnap the U.S. Ambassabor and threaten his life unless their demands are met.

Well-written and tense, the film ably demonstrates the flaws of people trying to fight fire with fire: "an eye for and eye". Alan Arkin is wonderful as the ambassador. His character gives incisive psychological sketches of his kidnappers: fervent and brooding; yearning and lost.

Fernanda Torres and Pedro Cardoso are marvelous as comrades who become lovers by their admittance of how really scared they are.

My subject line refers to a line in the script that aptly describes the bending of the political spectrum at its ends. I'm glad I found this movie.