RIO (the movie)
Posted by Elena Como with Atlantico Books on April 9, 2011 · 3 Comments
Samba. And Soccer. And beach-loving, bikini-clad Brazilians. I know what you (Brazilians) are going to say about this movie, and on some level… I agree.
Why does it have to portray Brazil by relying on the same stereotypes (samba/soccer/sexy Brazilian women) that we see in every Brazilian-movie made for export to the foreign audience???
Well… I liked it anyway. I was just in Rio last month, and this movie matou um pouco das saudades do (reminded me of/helped with the “missing” of) Rio.
It had a lot going for it despite the carnival/soccer backdrop. It is a familiar story: smugglers kidnap the main character, Blu, who is a blue macaw, and take him from Rio to Minnesota. He grows up as a pet in a cage, and then returns to Rio de Janeiro to find a blue macaw mate. Once in Brazil, Blu must face-off against smugglers again, along with a rag-tag group of friends (other birds and a bulldog, voiced by Tracy Morgan).
Rodrigo Santoro is the voice of one of the main human characters, opposite Leslie Mann, who plays Blu’s owner. Anne Hathaway voices Jewel, Blu’s love-interest. I appreciated hearing Santoro’s authentic Brazilian Portuguese, as well as his beautiful English (with the Brazilian Portuguese accent, of course). Jesse Eisenberg (the star of The Social Network) is the voice of Blu, and plays him rather nerdy. It sounded a lot like Justin Long to me, but I’m not used to thinking of Eisenberg as a voice-over actor. George Lopez’s toucan-sidekick is fun and spunky.
I loved some of the uniquely Brazilian details: from the samba-beats, to scenes in Rio’s sambodromo, it does give a taste of what Rio has to offer to tourists. There was even some Portuguese spoken–just a bit, but enough to satisfy me and the other Brazilianists (and Brazilians) who will undoubtedly see this movie in the USA. And perhaps that’s the point: a familiar story, told by engaging characters, but with a Brazilian twist. Every time I got to see a 3D panorama of Pão de Açúcar, Christ the Redeemer up in the Tijuca Forest, or Dois Irmãos off in the distance, I am sure I gasped audibly. If you do see this movie, spring for 3D. It’s a splendid experience of Rio de Janeiro, even if the movie itself tells a somewhat familiar, old story.
Absolutly agree with you Elena. Besides all the expected stereotype that we normaly find in an american production that describes Brazil in a way or another, the movie does fair justice to the beauty of this amazing city called Rio de Janeiro, nicknamed as Marvelous City, not by coincidence. Just pay attention to the panoramic views of the Christ, or Sugar Loaf or the amazing action scene filled with lights and color effect at the Sambodromo with the floats cars and you will get a bit of what it is to be in the middle of this huge urban town locaed amidst this beautifuly rainforest jungle that is Rio. Interesting to note that the main character, Blue, was indeed honored with his own float car in a parade this year in the last Carnival in Rio. But unfortunalty his car was so huge that it got stuck by the end of the exit at Sambodromo. But was nice to see how much effort 20Th Century Fox is doing to make this movie a big hit. And always nice to see a brazilian director in charge of all.
Just one nad thing Id like to mention: the songs. Specially the maing opening song with all the birds singing in a corner of a forest in Rio. Not sure if it is beacuse Im so used to sambas sung in portuguese, the english lyrics were not very easy to understand. So I plan to watch the movie in portuguese so I can see If I can actually hear not only the sounds and beats but also the voices and lyrics.
With that being said, lay back, relax and enjoy the excitement that is to see Rio portraited in such a beatiful way in a contemporary movie, withou so many tragedies and negative aspects as one could expect, since movies like Central do Brasil(Central Station), Cidade de Deus(City of God), and Tropa de Elite(Elite Squad).
http://www.thiagolucas.com
Thanks very much for your thoughful review, Thiago! I’m also curious to watch the movie in Portuguese. And I didn’t know about Blu’s float in the 2011 carnival, I’m looking for images of that now!
Um abraço!
Hey all. How can I watch the movie in Portuguese? I have the blu-ray but unfortunately, that’s not one of the audio options (only Spanish and French, aside obviously from English).