Modern World Cinema, Movie Review Example

Another Man’s Garden is a film that took place in Mozambique, Africa.  I personally liked this movie.  It was not the easiest movie to follow, but the setting and theme had realism to it and kept my attention.  Many parts of this movie allowed the viewer to see what life is like in Africa.  The setting and the characters added to the realism.  Even though the topic, at times, was hard to watch, the film was worth watching.

The narrative structure of Another Man’s Garden focuses on multiple main characters. It was a little confusing because is split the focus from one main character and flipped back and forth. Sofia was working towards her dream to become a doctor, and Mangueira was struggling to be a biology teacher in a private school. Two separate characters who stories mirrored the likeness with the ups and downs.  Sofia, struggling with her studies, the path to become a doctor, and her nephews illness. The other main character, Mangueira, is struggling with his new career path and his daughter who has became ill. Both Sofia and Mangueira turn to their boyfriend and wife for comfort, they both are denied sympathy and understanding.  As the story plays out, the two characters get closer to each other.  The depth allowed the viewers to see the struggle, the life, the story of Mozambique, Africa.  However, this movie did end with a lack of revolution.

The film style used 1970’s and 1980’s music that was popular in Mozambique.  The music was sung in its local language, often as a means of social or political protest.  This brought culture to the film.  The film also used images of impala to alert of danger.  The images were very brief, a few seconds long, right before Sofia’s scenes of risk or danger.  The color and shades of impala increased the terror that was brought when these scenes were played.  By implementing impala, the movie added a certain amount of intensity, but took away from some of the reality that it was trying to depict.

Life in Africa is hard, especially for a girl.  HIV/Aids is spreading rapidly, and corruption is visibly apparent.  Education is intended for the male, and females often had to depend on using sex in order to get a good grade.  Seeing inequality in a film is not always easy, but this and all the other factors have provided a visual pathway to the struggles that takes place in Africa.

City of Men is a great film; this one was probably my favorite.  It is a story of the struggle, the life, and the friendship of two fatherless boys who are simply trying to survive the streets of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.  It showed poverty and beauty all wrapped together.   Almost like the good and evil with the people of Rio de Janeiro and the gang wars that were taking place.   It was able to keep my attention from beginning to end, wondering what was going to happen.

The bond that these two boys had formed was stronger than if they were actually blood.  They both were victims of men who were able to produce children but never willing to father them.  The streets demanded more from the boys, Luis Claudío and Uolace, than they ever wanting to give.  It revealed the breaking point of bonds that happens as life plays out. Loyalty and friendship are tested with circumstance that continues to unfold.  These boys want to find their fathers and are disappointed with the end results, too little too late.

The film used strong language and violence to make the film more realistic.  The gang wars explode due to betrayal, and the streets become even less safe for the citizens that resided there.  The music was used to intensify the severity of the scene, and create ambiance of danger.  The film being shot in Rio de Janeiro showed the people, the area, and the life.  The society is corrupts and poverty is prevalent.

Gang rivalry and warfare is very common in Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo Brazil, as depicted in much of Brazilian cinema.  This society is lawless and corrupt, making it easily controllable by the gangs.  The citizens are caught in between rival gang wars as a means of control and power.  The two boys, Ace and Wallace, try to fill the void of their missing fathers; they try to find a role model in the gang of outlaws.  This shows life not only in Brazil, but many other countries, when children turn to the wrong outlet to fill the void of what their lives is missing.

Another Man’s Garden and City of Men had similarities in the fact that they were intended to tell a specific story.  Another Man’s Garden purpose was to depict the life and struggles that people from Mozambique, Africa call everyday life.  The film used real life location, people, and circumstances to allow the viewers to see a glimpse of life there.  However, the detail and involvement was not nearly as in depth as that in City of Men.  The movie was created in a way where the viewer could almost feel the dust rising from the dirt road and the poverty was inescapable.  This movie was kept real, no visions no dreams that took away from the reality of life in the streets of Brazil. It showed the poverty along with the beauty of the beach of the waterfront property.  Both films served the purpose for which they were created, however one was just able to depict reality much clearer that the other.

References

Carvalho, João Luis Sol de.  Another Man’s Garden.  Mozambique 2006.

Morelli, Paulo.  City of Men. Brazil 2007.