Vinicius (2005)

User Rating:

7.8/10   

Director:

Miguel Faria Jr.

Writers:

Rubem Braga (excerpt)
Miguel Faria Jr. (writer)

Release Date:

11 November 2005 (Brazil)

Genre:

Documentary | Biography | Music

Plot:

Documentary about Brazilian songwriter and poet Vinicius de Moraes, showing his life, work, family, friends, and love-affairs.

Plot Keywords:

Brazilian | Poet | Songwriter | Composer | Poetry

Awards:

3 wins & 4 nominations

Cast

Maria Bethânia	...	Herself
Ricardo Blat	...	Poem reader
M.S. Bom	...	Himself
Renato Braz	...	Himself - Singer "Se Todos Fossem Iguais a Você" (voice)
Chico Buarque de Hollanda	...	Himself - Singer 'Medo de Amar' (as Chico Buarque)
Olívia Byington	...	Herself - Singer "Modinha"
Adriana Calcanhoto	...	Herself - Singer "Eu Sei que Vou te Amar"
Antônio Cândido	...	Himself (archive footage)
Elizeth Cardoso	...	Herself - SInger "Eu Não Existo sem Você" (archive footage)
Tônia Carrero	...	Herself
Sérgio Cassiano	...	Himself - singer 'Pau-de-Arara / Comedor de Gilete'
Caco Ciocler	...	Narrator (voice)
Haroldo Costa	...	Himself (archive footage)
Yamandú Costa	...	Himself - Guitar Player "Valsa de Eurídice"
Marpessa Dawn	...	Herself (archive footage)
Georgiana de Moraes	...	Herself
Luciana de Moraes	...	Herself
Maria de Moraes	...	Herself
Mariana de Moraes	...	Herself - Singer 'Coisa Mais Linda'
Susana de Moraes	...	Herself
Vinicius de Moraes	...	Himself (archive footage)
Léa Garcia	...	Herself (archive footage)
João Gilberto	...	Himself - Guitar Player "Eu Não Existo Sem Você" (archive footage)
Gilberto Gil	...	Himself - Singer 'Formosa'
Ferreira Gullar	...	Himself
Francis Hime	...	Himself - Singer 'Sem Mais Adeus'
Nego Jeff	...	Himself
Antonio Carlos Jobim	...	Himself (archive footage)
Nara Leão	...	Herself (archive footage)
Lerov	...	Himself (as Leroy)
Edu Lobo	...	Himself - Singer 'Berimbau'
Carlos Lyra	...	Himself
Ana Maria Magalhães	...	Herself (archive footage)
Mart'nália	...	Herself - Singer 'Sei lá...a Vida tem Sempre Razão'
Miúcha	...	Herself
Pedro Moraes	...	Himself (archive footage)
Camila Morgadão
Camila Morgado	...	Poem reader
Zeca Pagodinho	...	Himself - Singer "Pra Que Chorar"
Pixinguinha	...	Himself (archive footage)
Baden Powell	...	Himself (archive footage)
Márcia Rodrigues	...	Herself (archive footage)
Mônica Salmaso	...	Herself
Toquinho	...	Himself - Singer 'Tarde em Itapoã'
Caetano Veloso	...	Himself - Singer 'Poema dos Olhos da Amada'
Carlinhos Vergueiro	...	Himself

Runtime:

110 min

Country:

Spain | Brazil

Language:

Portuguese

Color:

Black and White | Color

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Brazil:10 | Portugal:M/12

Filming Locations:

Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Company:

1001 Filmes

Trivia:

There are excerpts of the films "Vinicius de Moraes, Um Rapaz de Família" (Susana de Moraes, 1979), "Les Carnets Brésiliens" (Pierre Kast, 1963), "Pista de Grama" (Haroldo Costa, 1958)

A brilliant documentary about one of the most important figures in Brazilian culture

This documentary is a must for anyone interested in Brazilian music or culture in general. It's beautifully made and structured, a wonderful mix of performance, storytelling, and biography, and worthy of the man who inspired it. Vinicius De Moraes was an outstanding poet, playwright,and lyricist, best known to most of the world as the writer of the play on which the movie "Black Orpheus" is based, as well as the co-composer of "Girl from Ipanema." Many of the top figures in Brazilian music are here--Chico Buarque, Caetano Veloso, Maria Bethania, Toquinho--contributing personal and often very funny stories. Interspersed with these interviews are two actors, who "host" it all, reading Vinicius's poetry and presenting the outlines of his life. And, to finish it off, an array of Brazil's major singers performs his songs on stage, in front of an audience. Every moment is enjoyable. Re the comment on the translation, above: My Portuguse is not perfect and I'm sure I missed some things, but the particular example she chose is not so much a matter of translation as of spelling. Almost any native English speaker will realize the mistake instantly and substitute the correct word because of context. Non-Portuguese speakers should not let it deter them from seeing this film--if they can find it. I saw it at a special program on recent Brazilian film offered by the Museum of Modern Art, and it has not yet been released, either in general theaters or on DVD. I hope that will be remedied soon.