Run time: 138 mins

(Subtitled)

Walter Salles’ Oscar-nominated Brazilian drama is a gripping, beautifully crafted tale of a family navigating decades of tension with remarkable restraint and depth.

In the vibrant sunshine of 1971 Rio, Eunice and Rubens Paiva are raising their five lively children by the beach. As their eldest daughter Vera leaves for London to stay with her cousins, Rubens, a former congressman, is suddenly arrested under mysterious circumstances. Eunice and their teenage daughter Eliana are detained and later released, but the reasons for Rubens’ arrest and his whereabouts remain a mystery. In time, Eunice relocates with the children to her hometown of Sao Paulo, where she trains as a lawyer, determined for the government to acknowledge their wrongdoing.

Each member of this boisterous family feels thoroughly authentic. As Eunice, Fernanda Torres gives a remarkably nuanced performance. She is quiet and tenacious, and we can see her deeper emotions just under the surface, as well as her determination to protect her children.

And while there’s plenty of tension and outrage woven throughout the film, Salles’ measured approach puts a horrific chapter in Brazil’s history in the context of how it affected, and continues to affect, real people.