Vidas Secas

Adapted from a novel by Graciliano Ramos often referred to as a Brazilian The Grapes of Wrath, Nelson Pereira dos Santos' 1963 film—a neorealist account of the tribulations of a peasant family fleeing their drought-ravaged territory and trying to eke out an existence in the face of corrupt officials and landowners on an unforgiving landscape—won high praise at Cannes in 1964 and has since become recognized as perhaps the most notable product of Cinema Novo, a cooperative that brought together many of the country's major directors in an effort to create a truly national movement in filmmaking. After the passage of four decades, the picture—shot on location using natural light and largely non-professional actors—retains its power, with the stark black-and-white images and naturalistic style effectively capturing the grimness of the family's situation and their struggles against apparently insurmountable odds. A film that is both poignant and uplifting, powerful drama and searing social commentary, Vidas Secas bows on DVD with a splendid transfer and a number of extras, including a filmed introduction by academic Robert Stam of NYU, as well as an amusing short film made in 2002 by Luelane Loiola Corr(a (a “behind-the-scenes” mockumentary, supposedly narrated by the parrot that appears in Vidas Secas, which purports to reveal secrets about the bird's co-starring animal, the dog Baleia), and a brochure that includes printed excerpts from an interview with the director. Highly recommended. (F. Swietek)