For me, "Lower City" had the biggest impact. The other two clips we viewed definitely held their own in casting a light on how Brazilian cinema portrays women, especially those of color. However, "Lower City" was a blaring example. The central female character, the prostitute, is nearly invisible. She is not a human being, but she is an object used by the men within the story to fulfill their superficial needs. There is no really interesting relationship between her or either of the men. Only the relationship between the two men is interesting. However, that is pushed on the back burner for shallow sex scenes which seem like story crutches. But the film is fascinating in its inability to reconcile the dichotomy that most art forms have struggled with, that is of the view of woman as a madonna (mother) and whore. The film may fail in creating an insightful view of this Brazilian woman, but its failure can be viewed as way into the deeper relationship between men and women at least on a broad level.
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For me, "Lower City" had the biggest impact. The other two clips we viewed definitely held their own in casting a light on how Brazilian cinema portrays women, especially those of color. However, "Lower City" was a blaring example. The central female character, the prostitute, is nearly invisible. She is not a human being, but she is an object used by the men within the story to fulfill their superficial needs. There is no really interesting relationship between her or either of the men. Only the relationship between the two men is interesting. However, that is pushed on the back burner for shallow sex scenes which seem like story crutches. But the film is fascinating in its inability to reconcile the dichotomy that most art forms have struggled with, that is of the view of woman as a madonna (mother) and whore. The film may fail in creating an insightful view of this Brazilian woman, but its failure can be viewed as way into the deeper relationship between men and women at least on a broad level.
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