Opening 2 Oct 2014
Directed by:
Karim Aïnouz
Writing credits:
Felipe Bragança, Karim Aïnouz
Principal actors:
Wagner Moura, Clemens Schick, Jesuíta Barbosa, Fred Lima, Thomas Aquino
Donato is a life guard at the “Beach of the Future” (Praia do Futuro) in Brazil. He sees two men struggling to stay afloat and jumps to the rescue. He pulls Konrad on shore, but the other man, Konrad’s boyfriend, disappears. In the interim, while waiting for the body to reappear for burial, Donato and Konrad become friends to the point that Donato follows Konrad back to his home town of Berlin. There he adjusts to a new environment and learns new things about himself. Everyone is happy until Donato’s younger brother Ayrton arrives. He is quite upset to have been left alone in Brazil. Now three young men must adjust to new circumstances.
This played in competition at the 2014 Berlinale. In a press conference at the Berlinale, director Karim Aïnouz said that the gayness in the film is secondary. Primary is that a move to a different environment results in a loss of one’s former self. Actor Wagner Moura said, “How much of ourselves should we keep when we start a new life in a new country with a new language?” Here, the arrival of brother Ayrton from Brazil reminds Donato what he has given up. The film is about “loss” and “yearning for something.” Many of us will be able to identify with this problem, no matter our sexual orientation. Director Aïnouz is originally from Brazil but now lives in Berlin. (Becky Tan)
