Casting an unflinching eye on Brazilian society at the turn of the millennium, the hard-hitting films of this collection are lit up with familiar faces from telenovelas. In the early ’00s, Rodrigo Santoro, Murilo Benício, and Selton Mello were best known for playing likeable characters beloved by audiences across the country. Lending their talents to striking cinematic portraits of Brazilian identity in flux at the dawn of the 21st century, they portrayed troubled protagonists who stood in startling contrast to their small-screen personas. It was a daring gamble, and it paid off: winning multiple awards, these three films cemented the place of their audacious lead actors in contemporary Brazilian culture.
In Brainstorm (2001), Santoro’s galvanic performance is the beating heart of a true story of forced psychiatric internment that sent shockwaves throughout the country. Set in times of economic crisis, the gritty film also diagnoses a dangerous compassion deficit, palpable too in The Man of the Year (2003). A new hair color is enough to send Benício’s disaffected young man into a spiral of lies and crime—which he narrates as though he were a mere spectator to his own explosive life. From behind the desk at his overflowing pawn shop, Mello’s acerbic antihero in Drained (2006) similarly shares, in monotonous voiceover, shockingly caustic observations on the world and people around him. Sticky with hate, the film disturbs most for the kernel of truth at its center: in the early years of that brand new century, members of a younger generation felt left behind.
They found solace in the films of this collection, all of them critical and box-office hits. To celebrate Brazilian Cinema Day, we’re looking back at these key examples and descendants of Cinema da Retomada, which helped kickstart the local film industry after government policies put a virtual stop to it in the 1990s. Bracingly frank and proudly low-budget, these vivid snapshots of tumultuous times vibrate with fierce power and determination.

Casting an unflinching eye on Brazilian society at the turn of the millennium, the hard-hitting films of this collection are lit up with familiar faces from telenovelas. In the early &#8217;00s, Rodrigo Santoro, Murilo Benício, and Selton Mello were best known for playing likeable characters beloved by audiences across the country. Lending their talents to striking cinematic portraits of Brazilian identity in flux at the dawn of the 21st century, they portrayed troubled protagonists who stood in startling contrast to their small-screen personas. It was a daring gamble, and it paid off: winning multiple awards, these three films cemented the place of their audacious lead actors in contemporary Brazilian culture.
In Brainstorm (2001), Santoro&#8217;s galvanic performance is the beating heart of a true story of forced psychiatric internment that sent shockwaves throughout the country. Set in times of economic crisis, the gritty film also diagnoses a dangerous compassion deficit, palpable too in The Man of the Year (2003). A new hair color is enough to send Benício&#8217;s disaffected young man into a spiral of lies and crime&#8212;which he narrates as though he were a mere spectator to his own explosive life. From behind the desk at his overflowing pawn shop, Mello&#8217;s acerbic antihero in Drained (2006) similarly shares, in monotonous voiceover, shockingly caustic observations on the world and people around him. Sticky with hate, the film disturbs most for the kernel of truth at its center: in the early years of that brand new century, members of a younger generation felt left behind.
They found solace in the films of this collection, all of them critical and box-office hits. To celebrate Brazilian Cinema Day, we&#8217;re looking back at these key examples and descendants of Cinema da Retomada, which helped kickstart the local film industry after government policies put a virtual stop to it in the 1990s. Bracingly frank and proudly low-budget, these vivid snapshots of tumultuous times vibrate with fierce power and determination.

From TV to the Big Screen: The Brazilian ’00s

FROM TV TO THE BIG SCREEN: THE BRAZILIAN ’00S

Looking unflinchingly at Brazilian society at the turn of the millennium, the hard-hitting films of this collection sweetened the pill by casting beloved telenovela stars playing against type. To celebrate Brazilian Cinema Day, we look back at these bracingly frank snapshots of tumultuous times.

Looking unflinchingly at Brazilian society at the turn of the millennium, the hard-hitting films of this collection sweetened the pill by casting beloved telenovela stars playing against type. To celebrate Brazilian Cinema Day, we look back at these bracingly frank snapshots of tumultuous times.