Photo from the film Vazante. VAZANTE Music Box Films Director: Daniela Thomas Screenwriter: Daniela Thomas, Beto Amaral Cast: Adriano Carvalho, Luana Nastas, Sandra Corveloni, Juliana Carneiro Da Cunha Screened at: Critics’ link, NYC, 1/6/18 Opens: January 12, 2018 1821 was a very good year—if you were King George IV of England—but not if you were born or shipped to Brazil as a slave. If you resent the patriarchy in America, the behavior of white males in important positions, be thankful that you do not have to undergo the humiliation of enslaved people in the mining areas of Brazil, a country that imported more slaves via Luanda than any other state in the Western Hemisphere. Forty percent of all such unfortunate people sent to our hemisphere went to Brazil, where slavery was the peculiar institution even before the Portuguese traveled to the New World. Brazilians must have liked the institution: they were the last to emancipate all, in 1888. Antonio takes Beatriz (Luana Nastas), daughter of his brother-in-law (Roberto Audio), in marriage, a 12-year-old with whom he does not consummate his marriage until she has her menses. Otherwise, he’s no Mr. He gets off with Feliciana (Jai Baptista), as masters had been wont to do with the enslaved. Vazante movie times and local cinemas near New York, NY. Find local showtimes and movie tickets for Vazante. Eventful Movies is your source for comprehensive Vazante trailers, clips and cast interviews. View Vazante showtimes, movie information, cast photos, and user reviews. For her part, Beatriz hangs out with Feliciana’s son Virgilio (Vinicius Dos Anjos), a choice that will lead this slow-paced, reasonably quiet story to burst into frightful melodrama. With the help of co-scripter Beto Amaral, Ms. Thomas has no problem challenging the probable art-house crowd to keep patient, given the long takes and the occasional, dramatic close-up. Though I haven’t been anywhere in Brazil in 1821, I would bet that the scene is as authentic as you can get, probably backed up by the counsel of historians impressed by the 17th century discovery of emeralds, gold and diamonds in Minas Gervais. This led to a rush of Portuguese to colonize that vast land. As a film “Vazante” is a gem in itself, graced with serious performances albeit without the usual infusion of humor that filmmakers throw in for comic relief. Life looks hard, whether you’re a gaucho of an enslaved person. Aren’t we lucky all that baggage is now gone and Brazil is, like the U.S., a land of a multi-cultural population? Some political scientists have even praised the concept of Brazil’s “coffee-colored compromise” as a solution to racial hostility, an interesting label especially considering that, as Frank Sinatra told us, “They have an awful lot of coffee in Brazil.” Unrated. © 2018 by Harvey Karten, Member, New York Film Critics Online.
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