2020 is now guaranteed to have, at least, one indisputably great movie released in its calendar. Kino Lorber bought the North American rights to Cannes jury prize winner “Bacurau,” which was directed by Kleber Mendonça Filho and Juliano Dornelles. A trailer has been released in the process.
A perplexing mix of magical surrealism and grindhouse, “Bacurau” caught me off-guard in its first 20 minutes, but then transported me into a cinematic adventure Iike no other. It’s a thriller, but one filled with indelible artistry and breathtaking cinematic luxury.
Here’s the synopsis:
A few years from now… Bacurau, a small village in the Brazilian sertão, mourns the loss of its matriarch, Carmelita, who lived to be 94. Days later, its inhabitants notice that their village has literally vanished from most maps and a UFO-shaped drone starts flying overhead. There are forces that want to expel them from their homes, and soon, in a genre-bending twist, a band of armed mercenaries arrive in town picking off the inhabitants one by one. A fierce confrontation takes place when the townspeople turn the tables on the villainous outsiders, banding together by any means necessary to protect and maintain their remote community.
Concluding paragraph of my 5.16.19 Cannes review:
“We are indeed hooked by what is transpiring, very much in the same way that, say, one would be by grindhouse fare such as "I Spit in Your Grave" and "Hostel." But, of course, the filmmaking in "Bacurau" is much more beautiful, not to mention artful, than those aforementioned titles. It sings with blossoming camerawork and the kind of spiritual elegance a token midnight-er would surely lack.”
“Bacurau” arrives in theaters on March 6.
Paul Greengrass’ "The Uprising," starring Andrew Garfield, opened to $3.2M from 2,068 theaters this weekend. Yikes. The budget hasn’t been disclosed, but is said to be in the $20-$30M range.