Pixote
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Movie Reviews of Pixote
Movie Review: Powerful insight!!
Summary: 5 Stars
This is perhaps one of the most accurate depictions of life on the streets for millions of homeless, and parentless, children around the world. Vivid. Hard-hitting. Certainly not for the weak of stomach. Pixote tells the straight story of a young child's search for "familia", security and the realization of every child's dream for opportunity...... and of the sex, drugs, loneliness, violence and brutality that he finds instead in the streets. A great learning tool for students, social workers, law enforcement and those in the ministry: you will NEVER view street children the same after watching this. (...)Movie Review: too strong for words
Summary: 5 Stars
Although I am a person who is usually never at a loss for words, all I can say right now is that you MUST see this film. It is too good, too heartwrenching, and too powerful for me to even remotely try to do it justice. This is what real filmmaking is about. Hector Babenco is a genius!Movie Review: The hell of being a Brazilian street kid
Summary: 4 Stars
Hector Babenco reveals in the production notes of this powerful film that he pains to see someone who is out of balance.
Pixote is a tour de force representaion of what it means to be a dirt poor orphan street child in Brazil. This is not an enjoyable film to watch. It is depressingly sad and gut wrenching to witness. And you will not feel uplifted after the end titles. It is however a necessary piece of social commentary that deals with a subject that only really gets press when poverty and wealth collide. Yes here I am talking about crime. Crime and poverty and misery and hopelessness are all really one and the same thing.
In Brazil in the 1970's following the so-called "Brazilian economic miracle" large amounts of cheap unskilled labour was required to keep the economic engine of growth humming along by slaving away in its factories, constructing its buildings and generally developing the foundations for megalopoli such as Rio and Sao Paulo. These cities were built on the back of this cheap labour. The Brazilian government however never provided adequate housing and amenities to this unskilled labour force and hence the "favela" (slum) was born.
Pixote played by untrained child actor Fernando Ramos da Silva is the child ambassador for and metaphor of the favela child and his life aint worth shit especially in a country where street children are often referred to as "lixo" (garbage) and the wealthier classes perceive them as crime and danger personified.
This film takes you under the microscope of the lives of those favela street kids and the daily urban war waged upon them by a society that couldn't care less about them.
It's an indictment against the Brazilian society and I suppose any third world country for that matter. You don't need to go out and become some new age peace and love altruistic freak after witnessing this film. Just spare a thought for some poor kid who has no love, no hope and no chance. And just be a little more human.
Movie Review: Pixote
Summary: 4 Stars
Pixote is a movie about children living in a reformatory for children who get into trouble, or for children without family and homes. Some of these children do not have family and need to steal, because they do not have money to feed themselves. The movie is separated into two sections. The first section, shows the boys in the reformatory. The second section shows the boys living on the streets of Brazil after they escaped the reformatory. Pixote is a child in the reformatory. There are many problems that these boys encounter living in the reformatory. Some of them use drugs, some violate other boys, and some taunt the boys younger than them. This reformatory is not safe for these boys. They do not have families, so they become family with other boys. Some of the boys are found dead. The others do not want to die and the police are not protecting them. They are afraid they will be the next ones killed. Because of this, they escape for the streets of Brazil. The streets are not safe either, but they are free. They need to steal, because they have no money, and they need food. In the beginning they help a drug dealer. They meet a pimp, and buy his prostitute. They live with this woman. She will bring home a man, and later the boys come and rob the man. This is how the get money. The women becomes part of their family. The movie is very grafic with a lot of sex and nudity, but it is reality for some people. It is very sad to see how some people live their lives. Many parts I could not watch, because it was too graphic, but these are things chilren had to go through.Movie Review: a view from the inside beyond the statistics
Summary: 4 Stars
Pixote shocks and informs in a way that transcends our usual immunity mechanisms. The next morning following viewing this movie a friend directed me to a flash presentation about poverty (URL follows). The Internet site presents a familiar menu of statistics and weary faces; while I became intraspective and moved for a few moments, I now hardly remember what it said.
Pixote keeps you uneasy for two hours; watching children aspire to and do illogical things. You count down the last minutes wondering how it will end. Without being documentary or editorial, Pixote is moving. Statistics condense problems into numbers which are easy to forget and even easier to manipulate. Wealth and technological advancement are important factors that jump out of statistics, but it is how you achieve advancements that determines who is left behind. Pixote is not just poor, his life is valued less than the next drink of cachaca. As a drama it has the essential elements, well done.
The English subtitles on the DVD can be turned off, but were useful to understand unfamiliar slang. Other technical aspects could use some improvement, but the story drew me in enough to forget those.
If Pixote appeals to you, Hour of the Star (A hora de estrela) shouldn't be missed.
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