Quase Dois Irmãos (2004)

User Rating:

7.8/10   

Director:

Lúcia Murat

Writers:

Paulo Lins (writer)
Lúcia Murat (screenplay)

Release Date:

1 April 2005 (Brazil)

Genre:

Drama

Tagline:

We all have two lives: the one we dream of and the one we live.

Plot:

The strange friendship between two men of opposite social classes. Miguel is a senator. His childhood friend Jorge is a major drug-dealer...

Plot Keywords:

Friend | Friendship | Prison | 1970s | Samba

Awards:

12 wins & 8 nominations

Cast

Caco Ciocler	...	Miguel (anos 70)
Flavio Bauraqui	...	Jorginho (anos 70)
Werner Schünemann	...	Miguel (hoje / today)
Antônio Pompêo	...	Jorginho (hoje / today)
Maria Flor	...	Juliana
Fernando Alves Pinto	...	Peninha
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Brunno Abrahão	...	Miguel as a child (1950s)
Cristina Aché	...	Miguel's wife (1970s)
Lúcia Alves	...	Miguel's wife (2004)
Pablo Ricardo Belo	...	Jorge as a child (1950s)
Mr. Catra	...	Rap singer
Renato de Souza	...	Deley
Fernando Eiras	...	Miguel's father
Jandir Ferrari	...	Prison ward
Charles Fricks	...	Marcos
Jefchander Lucas	...	Boy from favela
Luiz Melodia	...	Seu Jorge
Erick Oliveira	...	Duda
Tonico Pereira	...	Head of Prison
Ernesto Piccolo	...	Marine Officer
Babu Santana	...	Pingão
Marieta Severo	...	Helena
Marcio Vito	...	Preso político

Also Known As:

Almost Brothers (Canada: English title) (festival title) (International: English title)

Runtime:

102 min | Argentina:102 min (Mar del Plata Film Festival)

Country:

Brazil | Chile | France

Language:

Portuguese

Color:

Color

Certification:

Argentina:16 | Brazil:16

Filming Locations:

Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Company:

Taiga Filmes

Movie Connections:

References Cidade de Deus (2002)

A country torn apart

QUASE DOIS IRMÃOS (the title translates as something like ALMOST LIKE TWO BROTHERS) is a brutal examination of Brazilian society, divided between black and white people, between politicians and drug barons, men and women, mothers and sons, us and them. There are times when these worlds live together, but they are bound to collide, crash and burn. The movie follows the friendship between a black man from the slums (Jorge) and a communist (Miguel). In their childhood, they play games and listen to the samba; in their youth, they are arrested (Miguel for political reasons, Jorge for being a thief); later, Jorge has become a drug baron and Miguel is a politician who forgot his dreams of changing the world. The centerpiece of the movie is the time they spent together in jail. Miguel learns that the "people" for whom he fights is not the way he idealizes them, and Jorge learns how to take the "political view" into the crime life, thus generating the organized crime. The director Lucia Murat, no strange to political persecutions herself(she was arrested and tortured by the dictatorship in Brazil)conducts this epic story with intimate care and great storytelling. The cast is top-notch, with great Brazilian actors giving the performances of their lives (Caco Ciocler and Flavio Bauraqui are standouts). A masterpiece from Brazil who deserves to be discovered.