Director Gustavo Pizzi wastes no time opening up the intimate and economical “Loveling” to its audience. The film is not alienating; it does not obfuscate its intentions. Pizzi knew what he wanted to make, and what he has made is a touching yarn about the pangs of familial maturation.
Set on the outskirts of Rio de Janeiro, Irene (Karine Teles, “The Second Mother”) is essentially a domestic superhero. On top of raising four boys, she’s letting her recently divorced sister (Adriana Esteves) crash while her husband Klaus (Otávio Müller) struggles with some financial woes. Oh, and she’s in the process of finally receiving her high school diploma. Adulthood was never supposed to be easy, but Irene is uncertain whether it was supposed to be this hard.
Discontent within the household is visible within every frame. Dinners and chores tend to descend into intolerable passive aggression before erupting into all-out verbal wars. Pizzi deftly captures the volatility of this situation.
Then, suddenly, their lives change when Fernando (Konstantinos Sarris), the eldest son, announces that he’s been recruited by a professional handball team in Germany. He’s set to leave in three weeks. Irene is in shock. “Three weeks,” she yells. “I thought it would be next year.” Big moves have a tendency to happen both unexpectedly and swiftly. For Irene, it’s too unexpected. Shocked by Fernando’s decision, Irene and the rest of the family are forced to come to terms with what’s ahead.
This series of events allows “Loveling” to ask (and sometimes answer) complex questions with a poetic simplicity. How do a mother and son grapple with the separation after years of familial hibernation? How does a child avoid disappointing his parents?
Fernando’s primary problem is one of success. This opportunity to play professional handball is the American equivalent of receiving a scholarship to play basketball at a D-1 school. Nothing is black and white. Yes, there’s joy in this remarkable moment–a chance for a kid to actualize his dreams. “Loveling” asks, “But at what cost?”
Irene and Klaus are grappling with his (and their) uncertain future, and it’s here Pizzi has tapped into an issue that transcends borders. Fernando’s conundrum is one of class: His achievement means leaving home and family. It means sacrifice and compromise and heartache. It’s not that his parents don’t want him to flourish; they’re just concerned about what may happen in their own lives without him.
The proceedings are bolstered by Pizzi’s impressive aesthetic vision. Vibrant and potent, “Loveling” (originally titled “Benzinho” in Brazil) occasionally plays like an intensified stage play. There’s a theatrical nature to the presentation. The sets look contained, almost homespun. Beyond the words exchanged between characters, it’s the setting that cements the film. It grounds Pizzi’s story in a way that feels authentic and alive.
“Loveling” leaves us in a spot you may not expect, or maybe it’s completely predictable. That will depend largely on the viewer’s personal family experience with distance and one’s own family. What’s clear is that there’s roadmap for parenthood, no algorithm to tell you the right or wrong way to raise a child.
If we’re to buy into Pizzi’s worldview, then we must accept that most people do the best they can with the tools they have. And sometimes that’s enough.
13 Hottest Sundance Movies for Sale: From Ax Murderers to Notorious 'RBG' (Photos)
Park City, Utah, is about to be flush with cash -- and we're not talking about buying apres-ski gear. Here are the most promising sales titles of the 2018 Sundance Film Festival.
"Tyrel"
After his stunning performance in "Mudbound," Jason Mitchell is back in this drama alongside Caleb Landry Jones, Michael Cera and Ann Dowd. Buyers should go crazy for the film about a guy who goes on a weekend birthday trip to a cabin -- but he's the only black guy on the retreat.
Sundance
"Lizzie"
There's much interest in "Lizzie," which chronicles the life of Lizzie Borden, who was tried and acquitted for the 1892 ax murders of her father and stepmother. Chloe Sevigny, Kristen Stewart and Denis O'Hare star.
Sundance
"Burden"
Garrett Hedlund also gave a stellar performance in "Mudbound," playing the son of a man associated with the Ku Klux Klan. In "Burden," Hedlund is a repo man rising through the ranks of the KKK, but everything changes when he falls for a woman (Andrea Riseborough). The additional cast of Forest Whitaker and Usher should entice buyers.
Sundance
"The Miseducation of Cameron Post"
Chloe Grace Moretz stars as a high school teenager who gets caught in the backseat of her car with another girl. She's quickly shipped off for conversion therapy, where she for the first time feels like she can find her place among fellow outcasts. The strong themes of pain and loss while finding yourself and your identity should make it a hot title -- after all, it's based on Emily Danforth's acclaimed novel as well.
Sundance
"Juliet, Naked"
Perhaps one of the most anticipated films on the Sundance schedule, "Juliet, Naked" is an adaptation of Nick Hornby's best-selling novel. Rose Byrne, Ethan Hawke and Chris O'Dowd star in this comedic drama about a woman who is in a transatlantic romance with a once-revered musician.
Sundance
"RBG"
What better time to release a documentary about Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg?
Sundance
"Piercing"
Based on Ryu Murakami's critically acclaimed novel, this steamy yet bloody thriller will get Midnight audiences' --- and buyers' -- heart rate up.
Sundance
"A Kid Like Jake"
Director Silas Howard is debuting his film "A Kid Like Jake," featuring an ensemble that includes Claire Danes, Jim Parsons, Octavia Spencer, Priyanka Chopra, Ann Dowd and Amy Landecker. Howard, who's directed boundary-pushing TV series like "This Is Us" and "Transparent," here focuses on parents whose young son prefers princesses to action figures.
Sundance
"The Happy Prince"
Rupert Everett's directorial debut details the final three years of Oscar Wilde's life. Colin Firth and Emily Watson round out the cast of this period film.
Sundance
"American Animals"
There will never be enough heist films in the world, and the cast of "American Animals," which includes Evan Peters, Barry Keoghan and Blake Jenner, promises to pull off one of the biggest art thefts in recent history. Plus, it's a true story.
Sundance
"Ophelia"
"Ophelia" retells Shakespeare's "Hamlet" from the point of view of the melancholy Danish prince's presumed future wife -- played by Daisy Ridley, hot off "Star Wars: The Last Jedi" and "Murder on the Orient Express." Naomi Watts and Clive Owen round out the cast.
Sundance
"Sorry to Bother You"
This film boasts one of the most impressive casts of any film heading to the festival, and that won't be lost on buyers: Lakeith Stanfield, Tessa Thompson, Steven Yeun and Armie Hammer star in the original comedy.
Sundance
"Wildlife"
Jake Gyllenhaal and Carey Mulligan star in Paul Dano's directorial debut, about a couple in a foundering marriage in small-town Montana in the 1960s.
Sundance
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Sundance 2018: Streaming companies and indie distributors will battle it out for these movies
Park City, Utah, is about to be flush with cash -- and we're not talking about buying apres-ski gear. Here are the most promising sales titles of the 2018 Sundance Film Festival.