A woman who has recently returned to her hometown village in remote, northeastern Brazil after two years of living in São Paolo refuses to allow the actions of others to dictate her fate as she keeps her eyes towards new horizons in director Karim Aïnouz's follow-up to his dynamic feature debut Madame Satã. Hermilla (Hermilla Guedes) is a single mother living a marginal existence in modern day São Paolo. Upon returning to the village in which she was raised to await the arrival of her husband,
Hermilla longs for the day that her family will become whole. Her hopes gradually fade, however, when it becomes painfully obvious to Hermilla that both she and her newborn son have been abandoned. Secrets are scarce in a village such as Hermilla's, and when word gets out about her dire situation the optimism of the once hopeful mother is quickly corroded by feelings of failure and humiliation. Though she briefly rekindles a relationship with former boyfriend João Miguel (João Miguel), Hermilla's painful realization that there is no returning to the past, coupled with an enlightening conversation with thoughtful prostitute Georgina (Georgina Castro), prods the troubled mother into devising a foolproof plan to finally break free of her troubled past. After adopting the name Suely as a means of both distancing herself from her family and preparing herself for the bold journey that lies ahead, the newly transformed Hermilla determines to raffle off a most unconventional prize to finance her flight into the future. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi
The steamy Brazilian drama Love for Sale takes a timeworn Hollywood premise -- down-on-her-luck woman turns hooker to survive -- and gives it an enthralling new twist.
In the end, the story feels a little thin and we never feel like we've gotten close to Hermila, but then she's someone who doesn't seem willing to reveal all to anyone so maybe Ainouz' tone is a good fit for the film.
Os quadros compostos por Aïnouz freqüentemente revelam um cuidado que transcende a estética, preocupando-se principalmente com o significado das composições ou mesmo com a sensação pura e simples transmitida ao espectador.
I saw this with English subtitles. I did not find it outstanding, but worth watching. Is it a comment on the few choices a Brazilian woman has - especially one with a child? Her husband abandons her, and she is left to raise their son with no income in a dead town - even his mother is no help.
"Love for Sale" starts with Hermila(Hermila Guedes) returning to her hometown of Iguatu from Sao Paulo with her newborn son but without Mateus, the boy's father, who has promised to follow soon. But it becomes clear that will not be the case and Hermila gets involved with an old flame, Joao(Joao Miguel). That is not
enough to make her stay, so she launches a fundraising plan by raffling off a night with herself... "Love for Sale" is a provocative little drama that is quite straightforward. I do not know if what Hermila does is prostitution(she thinks no, since it's a one time deal) but I would not condemn her in any case nor does the film. But the citizens of the town do, much more harshly than Mateus for the abandonment of his family which is far worse. Either Hermila does not recall how life in a small town works(she uses an assumed name but her dyed blonde hair makes her easily identifiable) or she is just defiantly burning her bridges.
August 19, 2007
Walter M.
Super Reviewer
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