Change Your Image
heybabyxxx
Ratings
Most Recently Rated
Reviews
Fabricando Tom Zé (2006)
Confusing, unambicious and disappointing
Tom Zé is a very creative Brazilian musician, whose work is unique, very sophisticated and one that deserves a great deal of attention (some have called him "the Brazilian Frank Zappa", not because they sound alike _they don't!_, but because the two of them studied classical music but composed popular music). Unfortunately, this documentary (that follows a somewhat cowardly and lazy trend in the contemporary Brazilian "film industry", documentaries about popular musicians _they're cheap and easy to make and have an almost guaranteed audience) fails to be as ambitious and rigorous as the artist it portraits.
Basically, we see Tom Zé on tour in Europe (France, Italy and Switzerland), to show us how he works with his band (with a great deal of improvisation _his concerts frequently seem like rehearsals, which sometimes is fun, sometimes not) and his wife and manager, but also to rub in our faces that an anti-commercial and under-appreciated artist from the backlands of a poor country in South America can "make it" (the tone is obviously hagiographic).
Then there is a quick (and therefore failed) attempt to biograph him. Then he is shown as a misunderstood genius and the film tries to answer why it took so long for him to get his well-deserved (although not big) recognition (citing old grudges that are unexplained) but, again, it fails to do so. Basically, it is a very poor, confusing and disappointing film _very differently from Mr. Zé's music. Sadly, it doesn't do him and his work justice. But check out his albums, though _specially his masterpiece, "Estudando o Samba".
Superman III (1983)
Unfairly underrated
This is, by far, my favorite feature film with Superman to this day. It gets better every time I watch it. Unfortunately, its qualities not always are recognized.
It's a great comedy, an action film, a science fiction and a very bright observation of the changes that the popularization of computers brought in the early 80s.
Also, brings the best performance of Christopher Reeve in the series and, possibly, in all his career. Margot Kidder, although doesn't appear much, is always OK, but the greatest surprise is Pamela Stephenson, fantastic as the false dumb blonde, questioning Kant when nobody is looking.
There are a lot of unforgettable scenes, but the movie becomes really great after Superman is exposed to a fake piece of kryptonite and becomes bad, blowing out the torch of the Olympic Games, straightening the tower of Pisa and destroying a bar with peanuts after a shot of whisky.
This movie is unfairly underrated (maybe because it's so daring and original) and it is yet to be rediscovered. It is destined to become a classic.
Olhos de Vampa (1996)
A Brazilian "Nosferatu"
This low-budget movie (completed in 1996, but released only in 2004) shows a policeman specialized in psychology and a fetishist photographer chasing "Vampa", a very peculiar vampire that lives in the big city of Sao Paulo (also known as "Sampa"): instead of sucking blood from necks, Vampa prefers to bite beautiful girl's asses (some of the actresses playing the victims were "Playboy" covers in Brazil), leaving always a ripe peach in their mouths.
Very funny, sexy, intelligent (there's a lot of subtext, from analysis concerning sexual preferences to social comments and references to soccer teams, but nothing that will spoil the fun of non-Brazilian viewers) and beautifully done, it's a fantastic movie _ but not recommended for those who doesn't have a sense of humor or the patience to see something audacious and different than the average.