Aquarius

Aquarius is an emotional and dramatic saga, featuring Clara in her fight for her apartment. In a world of expansive corporate engineering practices, Clara fights and hard for what she had and inherited.

Emotionally, Aquarius runs as a mix of drama and thriller. The film it leaves the viewer on edge at times, witnessing the covert tension Clara herself experienced and the engineers placed on her. The film's ending is unique and ending, so expect to ponder how the heck a resolution would be reached ultimately.

Besides plot twists, Aquarius also portrays the intimate experiences of Clara, her love for Brazilian and international music. It features a nice selection of songs and rhythms.

Finally, Aquarius also gives voice aspects of Brazilian society, such as the class division, and the shared experience of light in a coastal city, almost in passage, but beautifully.

In sum, It is an emotional, long, and intimate journey into the heart and experiences of an iconic and unforgettable woman. It may feel long at times and slow, but it is sure to pick up later on. It is a hard film to watch, but one superbly acted and edited.

It is sad that a powerful movie like this is contaminated by political ideology from both sides. Although I don't necessarily agree with any of the positions brought forth by the makers of this movie, this is still a fantastic piece of art, a fantastic story about the struggles of a middle-aged woman against not only a very real real estate speculation movement in Brazil, but also against her past, the upper-middle class blame, the old age labels, her family, all directed by probably the greatest living director of Brazil today.

From IMDb synopsis, Clara, a 65-year-old upper-middle class mother of 3 children, refuses to sell her apartment, the last still occupied, to a big real estate company, built in the upper class, seaside Boa Viagem Avenue, Recife. Pledging to only leave her place upon her death, her building is probably the last remnant of a not so long ago past. Facing this conflict ahead mostly by herself, she will reflect upon her past and future and give her new strength.

Although the story can seem to be a bit clichéd, the movie excels in representing a middle-aged woman in an unique and independent way, something rarely seen in movies, where usually these characters are simply secondary, caricatures. There will be no big reveals and big turns, it is a mostly linear story (quite different from Kleber Mendonça Filho last movie, "O Som ao Redor", also critically acclaimed). But the way the director tells the story is what is so great. With a technique so sharp, he creates tension throughout the whole movie in ordinary situations (his trademark, an influence from John Carpenter), like in the scene where Clara and the real estate manager are simply maneuvering cars in the building's garage. This tension is what carries the whole movie, until the powerful ending.

In addition, the greater part of the movie has no actual direct connection to the its apparent central plot. Clara attending parties, talking to the lifesaver, walking with her nephew, having family meeting is what fleshes out her character, telling so much about her personality and her past indirectly, and this is the film's greatest strength. The moment she has with her 3 kids is maybe one of the greatest scenes in Brazilian cinema.

Forget all the political ideology. Watch it for what this movie really is, a powerful, fantastic piece of art.

Greetings again from the darkness. If you were an avid movie-goer in the 1970's, you likely fell in love with Sonia Braga while watching Dona and Her Two Husbands (1976) and Kiss of the Spider Woman (1978). Those movies catapulted the Brazilian actress to global stardom, and a long career limited only by some regrettable script choices.

Writer/director Kleber Mendonca Filbo wisely casts Ms. Braga in the lead of his latest, and she delivers what may be her best performance ever … and certainly one of the best by any actress this year. Clara is the lone holdout in a beachfront apartment complex against a corporate developer intent on modernizing the old building in order to maximize profits.

The film is divided into three parts: "Clara's Hair", "Clara's Love", and "Clara's Cancer". The initial segment is set in 1980 when Clara is recovering from cancer treatment and is attending the 70th birthday party for her beloved Aunt Lucia (Thaia Perez). Lucia's flashbacks to her younger days bring a subtle smile to her face, while providing parallels to what we see later with Clara. Some secrets from family are treasured memories, not meant to be shared. As the story moves forward, we grow to admire and respect Clara and join in her defiance of the smirky hotshot developer.

The big company bullying the old lady would be an interesting and predictable story, but here it's secondary to the story of a strong woman – a woman who overcomes cancer, carries on after the death of her husband, fights to keep her home, and generally lives life on her own terms. She maintains her strength and dignity despite outside influences.

A recurring theme throughout is "old vs. new". From the first sequence with the "old" Aunt passing the baton to her younger niece, to the old lady battling the young developer in order to prevent the historic building from being turned into a modern co-op, to the contrast of the vinyl records of Clara's collection to the digital music of the younger generation, to Clara's preference for actual phone calls to texting. It's the classic now versus then argument, and it's summed up by Clara's line to her kids: "When you like it, it's vintage. When you don't, it's old." There are some similarities to Sebastian Lelo's 2013 film Gloria, which featured an exceptional performance from Paulina Garcia, and this one utilizes some terrific "little" scenes … conversations with family and daily life with her housekeeper – all while staying close to a glass of wine, her favorite music, a cozy hammock, and her Barry Lyndon poster. While the ending is a bit disappointing, and Brazilian politics prevented it from being that country's Oscar submission, those don't negatively impact the strength of Sonia Braga's Oscar worthy performance as we rejoice in the strength of an independent woman.

This is a very interesting film. I didn't really know anything about it and I found its narrative structure and plot pretty minimalist but still very impactful for its characters and for its themes. There seems to be a lot of controversy surrounding the film and its nonselection as the Best Foreign Language Film by its country into the Oscar category. I do hope that all of that controversy doesn't end up hurting the film in terms of viewership. The biggest reason to see this is probably Sonia Braga's performance. On the surface it doesn't really look like a particularly demanding or challenging role, but to say that would also be to discount and diminish the power on the things she does throughout. More than anything, it's an intriguing performance and the film is definitely recommended.

First of all I'd like to apologize myself due any English mistakes.

I didn't understand those bad reviews that I just read here. In fact the movie is simple, with a simple a story but very emotional. Here in Brazil we face racism and a social fight which is pointed out in the movie.

The actors are good and Sônia Braga spectacular. I could see this movie more ten times and I am sure that I would always have something to learn.

I'm giving you this review without political issues, I am just a cinema lover. Do not miss the opportunity to see how prejudice and racism are frequent around the world. Also you're gonna experiment a time travel throughout the memories!