This was the first big Brazilian drama that HBO worked on, and it’s a five-episode miniseries that lasts almost five hours in total. It’s a really emotional and political story set in Rio de Janeiro during the late 1980s, and it does a great job of showing what that era felt like while the country was dealing with the HIV/AIDS crisis. Since the world feels so divided today, the show is a beautiful reminder of how queer people can find power by standing together when things are hard. The story is actually based on real things that happened, specifically about flight attendants who smuggled AIDS medicine from the US into Brazil in the 80s. It works as both a history drama and a strong political message. The show is mostly about three people: Nando, his best friend Lea (they both work as flight attendants for Fly Brasil), and Raul, who is a performer and an activist. A lot of the story happens at a club called Paradise, which was one of the few open gay clubs back in the 80s. Nando is a h...
Closeted gay man Sasha is suicidal after his last secret boyfriend called off their relationship. Eventually he is coming out of the hibernation. One week when Sasha's grandmother fails to return the calls , his mother asks Sasha to accompany his brother-in-law Dima (his sister's husband) to visit her to make sure everything is fine. This starts a couple of days of drive sand trek during which we find that the two men have secretly been having an affair. It seems Dima is feeling more and more pain and wants to be in a more stable relationship with Sasha but Sasha feels a bit off. They reach their destination and see to Sasha's grandmother's well-being. Afterwards, Sasha and Dima during their return trek have a fight when Sasha tells Dima that he never loved him. He was just playing around. This pisses off Dima who has been struggling with his sexuality and ends up killing Sasha. Dima returns to his native village and eventually commits suicide.
As I said, the story had some good potential but then almost 45 minute sequence of their trek through the countryside feels overlong and underdeveloped. There are long drawn scenes of them just walking and not even talking at all. The stony silence is supposed to create dramatic or sexual tension but that doesn't happen at all. I was also confused as to whether their relationship developed during this trip or they did some fooling around before. They had so many opportunities to connect with each other but they just waste all the time in awkward silence. There is only one night of intense passionate sex. Sasha is particularly cold towards Dima, who in my opinion, had a lot more to lose. as actors they both do a great job, but IMO, its Dima who has a slight edge above Sasha (who also happens to be the director of the film).
The film is a much-needed examination of internalized homophobia, repression, and identity in a remote Siberian town but sadly the opportunity is missed in my opinion. There are still many parts of this world where queer folks still cannot live a hopeful life. (4/10)
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