In "The Pope's Toilet," to make ends meet, Beto(Cesar Troncoso) smuggles goods across the Brazilian border by bicycle where on one trip his pal and fellow smuggler Valvulina(Mario Silva) is unlucky to have his goods confiscated by their nemesis, Meleyo(Nelson Lence). Anyway, Beto is not getting any younger and would
like his teenaged daughter Silvia(Virginia Ruiz), a wannabe journalism student, to join in the family business but his wife Carmen(Virginia Mendez) violently disagrees. This is all towards buying a motorbike which would make his job that much easier, especially with his knee acting up. His bad knee also forces him to take the low road on a run which leads to an unfortunate run-in with customs. But the Pope is coming to visit and Beto has a plan...
Inspired by a real story, "The Pope's Toilet" is a heartfelt movie about a poor community that is hampered by the arbitrary nature of borders and authority that preys on the weak. So, you can understand that they see a huge opportunity when the Pope comes to visit. For the faithful, this means spiritual but most see it as a chance to make money to at least temporarily lift them out of poverty. And some wonder if it is right to make money off the Pope's visit. But, then, they do not have any choice, do they? And what's more important, anyway?
September 25, 2010
Top Critic
