Customer Reviews

Madame Sata

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Madame Satã reminds me a bit of the Marquis de Sade in his daring and open sexuality and steadfastness to what he believes in. And like Sade, he triumphs in the wake of adversity and does what he wants in spite of what others may think.

This film is visually and emotionally gripping. A very dark and furious picture of the 1930s bohemian/lower class sector of Rio de Janero. Even though the movie never focuses on the main character's life as Madame Satã (which occurs later in his life) it chooses instead to tell the story of his rise to that point and the hardships he faced (and those around him) as he tried to reach his goal under opressive odds. Some may be turned off by the homosexual element but I believe it's simply an accurate portrayal of the lives of some men during that time and what they had to do to get by.

The passion with which Lázaro Ramos performances belies his young 22 years (in the making of featurette he even admits to going through things in the movie he had never dealt with before, simply because he is so young). Even the supporting cast of little known actors and actresses do a wonderful job of making the time and the place all the more believable.

If you love challenging films, indie films or films about underground legends, then I would definately recommend this to you.

Karim Ainouz has created a film which shows a section of the late Brazilian Joao Francisco dos Santos's life. Joao was an incredibly fascinating man and his life in many ways paralleled Jean Genet's life. To both these men being a homosexual and criminal were inextricably intertwined. Growing up in the their respective repressive societies they had good reason to feel this way. Joao was born to slaves, never received any formal education and lived much of his life amongst the degenerate and outcast. Periods of his life were spent incarcerated for thievery and violence. He was fully capable of defending himself being an expert kickboxer. However, he also had a strong maternal side having adopted seven children throughout his life. He also had a tremendous flare for performance fashioning himself as a successful drag artist who won multiple competitions and became a kind of cult hero later in his life.

This film chose to focus only on his time in the 1930s where he was trying to make the transition from being a thief to a performer. It has been severely criticized for not encompassing many of the other interesting aspects of his life. However, I found this film to be incredibly moving in the way it portrays the intense frustration Joao feels from being outcast from the majority due to his race, class and sexual identity. Even more isolating is that even amongst people to whom he is equal he is abused and vilified. The period of his life that the director focused on beautifully illuminated this conflict. Through Lazaro Ramos's tremendous performance, Joao's emotions erupt in his reactions to how people react to him. Often the camera zooms close onto people's faces and body parts making the experience very personal. We see Joao's emotions change as quickly as his physical appearance. In a short scene he switches from jubilation to anger to despair. Joao was not a kind of martyr or saint. Ainouz portrays a Joao that is given to fits of unexpected violence, insulting and physically beating those closest to him at times. Yet, over the course of his trials I developed a strong sympathy for him because of his drive to survive and fight for what he believed in.

The narrative doesn't have a tight focus, but I suspect this is because Joao's life didn?t either. At the beginning of the film he is working part time in a night club for a performer he admires. This job comes to a terrible end. It also shows him turning tricks through a nightclub and stealing from his customers with the help of his close friends and housemates. He meets a beautiful and dangerous man named Renatinho who he labels The Indian Prince. This follows nicely with Joao's obsession with fairy tales and mythology. He hilariously twists the much told tale of the woman he works for to suit him personally. Joao and Renatinho?s relationship is portrayed beautifully, capturing the violence and steamy eroticism of their coupling. The narrative unexpectedly leaps forward after Joao is required to spend a year in jail. After making some devastating discoveries he launches his career as a drag artist to great acclaim. But the angry words of a drunken bigot bring Joao to defend his honor and we realize that he will have to spend many more years in prison before returning to the stage. This film is an amazing work which captures a portion of Joao's most colorful and brave life.

I thought the movie was great. The lead actor is very handsome and I thought he did a wonderul job. I have read the other reviews and yes he is rude and mean, but has a soft side because no matter what he always took care of his extended family. Taboo was timid and I was not suprised by the way Joao treated him. Laurita as well seemed to be in love with Joao even though she new of his life style. She always showed him compassion like a wife would a husband. I thought the movie was great I wish we new more about his child hood and how he really looked. It's a must see!

An amazing lead performance, terrific, strong, stylistic lighting and camerawork, and good supporting performances highlight this true story of a violent, sad, sexy, gay Brazilian pimp and drag queen performer in the 1930s, and his two housemates/earners - one male and one female. Touching, complex, never dull. but somehow doesn't quite add up to as much as it seems like it should. It spends so much time on some elements of 'Madame Sata's story, that it speeds by and glosses over other key moments, especially the ending. None-the less, very worth seeing for all that's good about it, and forgivable for it's flaws.

Right away,

I'll admit that this is a really good movie, per se. It is a real-life depiction of João Francisco dos Santos, a man with a complex, troubled life in 1930's Brazil. In spite of being a con-artist, thief, prostitute/pimp, and all-round angry person, Joao is also, believe it or not, a caring individual who displays acts of good in quieter, but no less extraordinary, ways. Throughout his life, he is often misunderstood and he struggles to balance the two extremes of his personality.

My only complaint is that this movie is a meager representation of João Francisco dos Santos' life. We are introduced to only a very short time period of his life; probably not more than a year out of his life of 76 years. We learn more about him from reading the product description than we would ever have known by watching the film alone. We see nothing about his early life nor any references that may have helped us to understand his actions better. We are told that he spent much time in prison ("26 of his 76 years" on earth) but we view one arrest. We are told told that he adopted 7 children, but we only see one. We are told that he was a consumate cabaret/drag performer, but we only see one performance and his beginnings as an "understudy." We are told, at the end of the film, about his many successes in the famed Brazilian Samba Carnivals, but, in regards, we only view a single slow motion, abstract monologue at the end as a wrap-up. In fact, the title "Madame Sata" is only used once, right before closing credits to tell us what he did in later life. We never actually see Madame Sata!

Needless to say, I was extremely disappointed; not with the movie but with the way it was presented. If one had no previous knowledge about Dos Santos or had not read the movie description, the viewer would be cheated about knowing the life of a truly remarkable human being. I felt that there was so much more than could have been included in the movie.

However, I enjoyed the movie, as it was. The lead actor is incredible and I've enjoyed seeing him in Carandiru and City of God, two other great Brazilian, real-life movies.

Be aware,
reviews and the DVD cover are going to set you up for viewing the story of an incredibly complex and interesting man, but you're actually going to experience about a third of his life.
It's almost like being served a filet mignon for hors d'ouevres, and then bread and water for the main course. Sadly, the plot synopsis offers more than the movie delivers.

This is a fascinating, extremely well done, documentary style Indie film about the life of a down and out guy who defies narrow definitions.
The story description focuses on the most outré elements of this man's life: Brazillian pimp, street fighter, drag queen, thief, criminal.
The outstanding achievement of this film, though, is to put his life into context, that he is also protector, father, dreamer, artist; but does not airbrush, glamorize nor excuse his life.
This film goes further to put his life into context in the racial mix of Brazil of the 1930s, when slaves were freed but not allowed to hold jobs, the Brazil of Carnival where even the most macho men appear in drag. Deftly touching on all, but not belaboring any one of these elements of bigotry and systemic injustices, we are given a real portrait of an unusual family who are revealed in their entirety, rarely good, not entirely bad, really human.
The performances of the main four characters are simply outstanding and raw, so much so that you begin to wonder if this really IS a documentary. The small supporting roles are all equally strong. A riveting film in all respects; here the art direction and filming styles really augment the gritty reality and emotional perspective of an edgy life in a difficult time and place.
This is a morally complex film, not for children at all, not for those who do not like indie films. If you rent it, DEFINITELY listen to the commentary, the Director DOES achieve what he hopes to convey. This is not a film you "love" - it is one that deserves deep respect.

AS the FILM IS INTERESTING REMEMBERING A HCHO THAT HAS SUCCEEDED DOES MANY Years AT A TOWN OF BRAZIL
A FILM THAN IN HIS EPOCH HE HAS CAUSED MANY REMARKS

Like "Burnt Money" and "Our Lady of the Assassins," this movie continues the recent trend of very challenging, and sometimes disturbing, gay films from South America. This film focuses upon Joao, a black gay man in the 1930s who was both a performer and a criminal. It was great seeing a black, gay man in the center of a film rather than at the margins or not at all. This film will definitely add to debates on political correctness. Audience members, regardless of racial or sexual identity, may relate to this tale about a human's need to perform and growth through performance. This is the director's debut and I applaud his efforts.

However, my praise stops there. Despite reeling at the racism and homophobia that Joao faced, I found myself hating this character and being even further saddened that the film is based on real life. Like Fred Flintstone, though Joao mistreats all the people who love him, they still support and worship him. There's another black gay character that Joao treats like garbage though they look so much a like, I had to watch the credits to make sure they weren't played by the same actor. It's hard to believe that in a conservative Latin American country seven decades ago, two openly gay black men could live with a single white woman and her white daughter and no one bats an eye. Brazil has the largest black population of any country outside of Africa, yet this film had few blacks in it besides the two main characters. For a period piece, you don't get to see much of the period (but this I can let go because I'm sure the film had a limited budget). Joao treats his main love interest like garbage yet mourns his death. He is nice to a bartender that appears in the movie out of nowhere. The film never really explains how Joao became a celebrity through Carnival. Though black gay men have much oppression to be upset about (whether now or in the past, in Brazil or in the US), this character lashes out at everybody and it's hard to be sympathetic to him despite the many barriers he faces.

All people who think this will be another "Black Orpheus" should be ware.