''Memórias Póstumas'' (known in English as ''Posthumous Memoirs'' and ''Posthumous Memories'') is a 2001
comedy-drama
Comedy drama (also known by the portmanteau dramedy) is a hybrid genre of works that combine elements of comedy and Drama (film and television), drama. In film, as well as scripted television series, serious dramatic subjects (such as death, il ...
film directed by
André Klotzel
André Klotzel (born July 30, 1954) is a Brazilian film director, film producer, producer and screenwriter. Born in São Paulo, Klotzel always enjoyed photography and thus studied it at the Escola de Comunicações e Artes, School of Communicati ...
based on ''
The Posthumous Memoirs of Bras Cubas
''The'' is a grammatical article in English, denoting nouns that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The ...
'' by
Machado de Assis
Joaquim Maria Machado de Assis (), often known by his surnames as Machado de Assis, ''Machado,'' or ''Bruxo do Cosme Velho''Vainfas, p. 505. (21 June 1839 – 29 September 1908), was a pioneer Brazilian people, Brazilian novelist, poet, playwr ...
Petrônio Gontijo
Petrônio Gontijo de Alvarenga (born July 5, 1968) is a Brazilian actor.Viétia Rocha as Vírgilia
*
Sônia Braga
Sônia Maria Campos Braga (; born 8 June 1950) is a Brazilian actress. She is known in the English-speaking world for her Golden Globe Award–nominated performances in ''Kiss of the Spider Woman (1985 film), Kiss of the Spider Woman'' (1985) a ...
as Marcela
*
Otávio Müller
Otávio Müller de Sá (born August 6, 1965), most known as Otávio Müller, is a Brazilian actor. Most known for comical roles in television, such as in the Rede Globo's series '' Tapas & Beijos'', he is also a stage actor, and film actor. On th ...
as Lobo Neves
*
Marcos Caruso
Marcos Vianna Caruso (born 22 February 1952) is a Brazilian actor, screenwriter, playwright, and stage director.
He graduated in Law from the Law School of Largo de São Francisco. He is the author of several plays written in partnership with t ...
as Quincas Borba
*Stepan Nercessian as Bento Cubas
*Débora Duboc as Dona Eusébia
*
Walmor Chagas
Walmor de Souza Chagas (28 August 1930 – 18 January 2013) was a Brazilian actor, director, and producer. He appeared in more than 50 films and television shows between 1965 and 2012.
In 1956 he was awarded the Prêmio Saci, among the m ...
as Dr. Villaça
*Nilda Spencer as Dona Plácida
*
Milena Toscano
Milena Toscano Gonçalves (born January 11, 1984), is a Brazilian actress.
Career
Born in Santo André, São Paulo, Milena Toscano started her career as a model when she was ten years-old, after she was hired by the Ford Models Agency. Sh ...
as Eugênia
Production
Klotzel started to adapt the novel and search for sponsors in 1996; the production was done in 1998, and it was shot in 1999. A co-production between Brazil and Portugal, ''Memórias Póstumas'' had a budget of about R$4.5–5 million ($2,006,509–2,229,455). It was shot in about 60 filming locations at eight cities, including
São Paulo
São Paulo (; ; Portuguese for 'Paul the Apostle, Saint Paul') is the capital of the São Paulo (state), state of São Paulo, as well as the List of cities in Brazil by population, most populous city in Brazil, the List of largest cities in the ...
,
Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro, or simply Rio, is the capital of the Rio de Janeiro (state), state of Rio de Janeiro. It is the List of cities in Brazil by population, second-most-populous city in Brazil (after São Paulo) and the Largest cities in the America ...
,
Parati
Paraty (or Parati, ) is a preserved Portuguese colonial (1500–1822) and Brazilian Imperial (1822–1889) municipality with a population of about 43,000. The name "Paraty" originates from the local Guaianá Indians' indigenous Tupi language, ...
,
Salvador
Salvador, meaning "salvation" (or "saviour") in Catalan, Spanish, and Portuguese may refer to:
* Salvador (name)
Arts, entertainment, and media Music
*Salvador (band), a Christian band that plays both English and Spanish music
** ''Salvador'' ( ...
and
Coimbra
Coimbra (, also , , or ), officially the City of Coimbra (), is a city and a concelho, municipality in Portugal. The population of the municipality at the 2021 census was 140,796, in an area of .
The fourth-largest agglomerated urban area in Po ...
, which lasted twelve weeks.
Release and reception
Its worldwide premiere occurred at the Panorama section of the 2001
Berlin International Film Festival
The Berlin International Film Festival (), usually called the Berlinale (), is an annual film festival held in Berlin, Germany. Founded in 1951 and originally run in June, the festival has been held every February since 1978 and is one of Europ ...
, and it was well received by the public. ''Memórias Póstumas'' competed at the 18th
International Film Festival of Kerala
The International Film Festival of Kerala (abbreviated as IFFK) is a film festival held annually in Thiruvananthapuram, the capital city of Kerala, India. This film festival started in 1996 and is hosted by the Kerala State Chalachitra Academy ...
, and won five awards at the 29th
Festival de Gramado
The Gramado Film Festival () is an international film festival held annually in the Brazilian city of Gramado, Rio Grande do Sul, since 1973. In 1992, the festival began to award Latin American films produced outside of Brazil. It is the biggest ...
: Best Critic's Choice Film, Best Jury's Choice Film, Best Director, Best Screenplay and Best Supporting Actress for Braga. Its release in Brazil was on August 17, 2001, and it grossed R$855,484 ($381,452) with an attendance of 186,380 people in the 57 theatres in which it was released.
It was also well received by English-language critics. Kate Blackhurst from ''The Lumière Reader'' said "I can see why it won several international film awards, and its excellence lies in the fact that it is almost impossible to explain." ''
Variety
Variety may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats
* Variety (radio)
* Variety show, in theater and television
Films
* ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont
* ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...
''s Eddie Cockrell "Andre Klotzel revisits distinctive brand of local telenovela melodrama he knows best, with spoofy results that will put pic in demand at fests. Theatrical may be a bit iffier, although vid and tube life will be spry." Writing for ''
The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
'',
Elvis Mitchell
Elvis Mitchell (born December 6, 1958) is an American film critic, host of the public radio show ''The Treatment'', and visiting lecturer at Harvard University. He has served as a film critic for the ''Fort Worth Star-Telegram'', the ''LA Weekly ...
stated it has a "hilarious poise", adding that the film "is playful and formal".