Fernanda Torres still remembers the day her mother, the grande dame of Brazilian cinema, was within reach of cinema’s most coveted award: an Oscar.
“This had great symbolism for Brazil,” said Torres, an acclaimed actress, in an interview. “I mean, Brazil produced something like her, you know?” he added. “It was very beautiful.”
A quarter of a century ago, Fernanda Montenegro, now 95, made history by becoming the first Brazilian actress to be nominated for an Oscar. She lost to Gwyneth Paltrow, and Brazil never got over what it saw as a snub.
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Now Torres, 59, is attracting buzz in Hollywood that could put her in line to win the coveted golden statuette for a role that sparked movie fever — and a national reckoning — in Latin America’s largest country.
Millions of moviegoers are flocking to theaters to watch “I’m Still Here,” a silent drama starring Torres about a family torn apart by a military junta that ruled Brazil, through fear and force, for more than two decades.
Now, the film has been nominated for a Golden Globe for best foreign language film, and Torres has been nominated in the best actress category, raising Oscar hopes.
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Although the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, which oversees the Oscars, won’t reveal its nominations until January, “I’m Still Here” is Brazil’s official entry in the best international film category.
At home, the film struck a nerve in a nation that suffered under the brutal dictatorship of 1964 to 1985.
Set in Rio de Janeiro in the 1970s, “I’m Still Here” tells the story of Eunice Paiva and her five children, whose lives are destabilized when the family patriarch, Rubens Paiva, a former deputy played by Selton Mello, disappears in the streets. hands of the military government.
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By telling the story of this family, the film addresses a “piece of Brazilian history” that is being forgotten, said Walter Salles, the film’s director and one of the country’s most prolific filmmakers. “The personal history of the Paiva family is the collective history of a country.”
The film quickly became a national treasure, breaking box office records and eclipsing the usual blockbusters such as “Wicked” and “Gladiator 2”.
Since the release of “Still I’m Here” in early November, more than 2.5 million Brazilians have watched it in theaters, and it has grossed more than six times the amount made by last year’s most-watched Brazilian film.
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In a worrying turn of events, the film was being widely shown in Brazil just as police revealed new details about a plan to carry out a coup and keep far-right President Jair Bolsonaro, a supporter of the military dictatorship, in power after his defeat. in the 2022 elections.
In this context, the film’s themes took on an urgent new meaning, said Marcelo Rubens Paiva, whose book about his family inspired the film.
“The timing was, unfortunately, perfect,” he said, “because it showed that this history is not just part of our past.”
Human rights groups estimate that hundreds of people were disappeared and around 20,000 were tortured during the dictatorship. But unlike Chile or Argentina, where many crimes committed under military dictatorships were tried and punished, Brazil did not seek accountability for its military atrocities.
In recent years, what many saw as a distant past has begun to infiltrate the present. Bolsonaro, a retired army captain, often spoke in nostalgic terms about the dictatorship, gave thousands of government jobs to soldiers and dismantled a panel that investigated crimes committed during military rule.
Films and other forms of cultural works were frequent targets of censorship during the dictatorship, which considered them political enemies. Now, films like “I’m Still Here” can serve as “instruments against forgetting,” Salles said. “Cinema reconstructs memory.”
And the film certainly ignited Brazil’s collective memory. In classrooms and newspaper pages, heated debates are unfolding over the legacy of the dictatorship. On social media, stories of suffering at the hands of the military government went viral, attracting millions of views.
If nominated in the best actress category, Torres would be following a remarkably similar path to her mother, who was nominated in 1999 for her role as a letter writer to illiterate people in “Central do Brasil,” a Brazilian classic also directed by Salles.
“There was a feeling in the country that she was deeply wronged,” said Isabela Boscov, a Brazilian film critic who has been reviewing films for three decades.
“I’m Still Here” is widely expected to receive a nomination in the international film category, according to Hollywood insiders, but Torres’ chances are more uncertain.
Sony Pictures Classics, the studio that distributes “I’m Still Here” globally, which launched the successful best actress nomination campaign for Montenegro, is making a concerted effort for Torres. However, she may struggle this year in a crowded field that includes the likes of Angelina Jolie and Nicole Kidman.
For Torres, an Oscar nomination “would be a huge victory” in itself, but she isn’t getting her hopes up. “It would be an incredible story if I got there, following my mother,” she said. “Now, winning — I consider it impossible.”
Since the first Oscar ceremony in 1929, only two actresses have won awards for leading roles in foreign-language films.
On a recent Sunday afternoon at Torres’ home, she sat across from her mother, reminiscing about art and family and other films the two made together.
“This is also a legacy of life, of a profession,” said Montenegro, gesturing toward her daughter, then herself.
After a career spanning more than seven decades, Montenegro still acts in films and on stage. But her movements are slower, her vision is weakening and she rests more.
Sharing a character with his daughter, in a film that inspired admiration and reflection throughout Brazil, also carries personal symbolism. “It’s a really special moment,” Montenegro said.
After one last lipstick check in the mirror, the two actresses positioned themselves for a photo for this article. They brought their faces closer, their cheeks almost touching. Like Eunice Paiva, in the film they both appear in, they prefer to smile.
“My mother is still alive; everything is fine with her,” explained Torres. “I am happy.”
“As it happens, I’m still here,” Montenegro replied. Torres added: “We are still here.”
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