O Samba

Director Georges Gachot's documentary focuses on Martinho da Vila's Vila Isabel Samba School, as members prepare for the 2013 Rio de Janeiro Carnival parade with the aim of not just making a good showing, but ultimately triumphing over the other 11 schools. Although Gachot includes interviews with a few participants, O Samba is mostly shot in narration-free cinema vérité, observing float preparations, rehearsal sequences, and song performances. To singer and composer da Vila, samba keeps the history of Brazil alive through tales of the country's African roots and customs. For drum instructor Master Wallan, samba represents Brazil at its best, although he remembers a time when authorities held samba in low regard. As da Vila notes, the music has always been associated with the favelas, the country's poorest neighborhoods. Fortunately, times have changed. “Samba, for me,” Wallan states simply, “is my life.” Da Vila also travels to Paris, where he records a duet with Greek singer Nana Mouskouri in an interesting interlude that doesn't really tie in with the rest of the film. Other featured performers include Moyseis Marques, Leci Brandão, Ney Matogrosso, and da Vila's daughters, Mart'nália and Maíra Freitas. The Vila Isabel parade performance at the end features an Angola-inspired float dominated by a giant golden lion and dozens of dancers in elaborately beaded and feathered costumes. Recommended. Aud: C, P. (K. Fennessy)