"Contra Todos" (Up Against Them All) is the directing feature debut of Roberto Moreira, and was produced by Fernando Meirelles (the Oscar-nominated director of "City of God"). Both films deal with urban violence within poor communities on the "wrong side" of Brazilian big cities (a huge favela in Rio de Janeiro in "City of God", a VERY dysfunctional family in the low-life outskirts of São Paulo here), but there the similarities end. While virtuoso "City of God" is a cinematic dazzler in almost every aspect, claustrophobic, ponderous and pessimistic "Contra Todos" has major problems that render audience adhesion very difficult.
In the DVD extras of "Contra Todos", director Moreira explains that, though the script outline was prepared in advance, most of the dialog and situations were created as a result of improvisational exercises with the cast. Well, it certainly shows! What we see here is a filmmaker fascinated by the "Ackt-ing process", letting his actors indulge in narcissistic show-offs ("feeeeeel-ing", "thiiiiink-ing", shouting, crying, re-Ackt-ing, etc), while clumping the story with clichés, forced twists and loose ends. The improvisational modus operandi has worked wonders for a few experienced filmmakers like Godard, Fellini, Mike Leigh, Altman, John Sayles and even a talented "beginner" like Fernando Meirelles himself, but Moreira is not (yet) in that league.
"Contra Todos" has some qualities -- it's undeniably honest and heartfelt -- but is drowned in problems, especially the lack of interest those grim, repulsive characters inspire in the audience, the totally unbelievable denouement, and Moreira's complete lack of humor or irony. Furthermore, "Contra Todos" suffers from that ghastly disease of camera tremula, poor video quality, a three-buck budget and unimaginative music.
Don't watch this if you're not into shaky hand-held camera, graphic realism, and the VERY depressing side of the human soul, or if you're looking for something to cheer you up. Do watch this if you are a film student interested in knowing more about recent Brazilian films (but you can certainly see better ones than this) or are curious about improvisational acting: you'll see decent jobs by Sílvia Lourenço, who plays Soninha with evident élan (although she is too old for the part), and especially Ailton Graça, who plays Waldomiro with wholesome presence and effortless charisma (as he had already shown in "Carandiru"), making the film a little warmer every time he's on screen.
In the DVD extras of "Contra Todos", director Moreira explains that, though the script outline was prepared in advance, most of the dialog and situations were created as a result of improvisational exercises with the cast. Well, it certainly shows! What we see here is a filmmaker fascinated by the "Ackt-ing process", letting his actors indulge in narcissistic show-offs ("feeeeeel-ing", "thiiiiink-ing", shouting, crying, re-Ackt-ing, etc), while clumping the story with clichés, forced twists and loose ends. The improvisational modus operandi has worked wonders for a few experienced filmmakers like Godard, Fellini, Mike Leigh, Altman, John Sayles and even a talented "beginner" like Fernando Meirelles himself, but Moreira is not (yet) in that league.
"Contra Todos" has some qualities -- it's undeniably honest and heartfelt -- but is drowned in problems, especially the lack of interest those grim, repulsive characters inspire in the audience, the totally unbelievable denouement, and Moreira's complete lack of humor or irony. Furthermore, "Contra Todos" suffers from that ghastly disease of camera tremula, poor video quality, a three-buck budget and unimaginative music.
Don't watch this if you're not into shaky hand-held camera, graphic realism, and the VERY depressing side of the human soul, or if you're looking for something to cheer you up. Do watch this if you are a film student interested in knowing more about recent Brazilian films (but you can certainly see better ones than this) or are curious about improvisational acting: you'll see decent jobs by Sílvia Lourenço, who plays Soninha with evident élan (although she is too old for the part), and especially Ailton Graça, who plays Waldomiro with wholesome presence and effortless charisma (as he had already shown in "Carandiru"), making the film a little warmer every time he's on screen.