Found Memories

With its low-key wit and simmering poignancy, Found Memories is a lovely feature film about kick-starting life in a ghostly Brazilian village. Filmmaker Julia Murat deftly depicts the maddeningly slow pulse of Jotuomba, a community surrounded by dense forest and seemingly occupied by no one under the age of 60. Stuck in a collective rut and locked into some long-held traditions—the town cemetery is locked for some reason, but no one knows (or remembers) why—Jotuomba receives a little jolt when young photographer Rita (Lisa Fávero) shows up with a curious eye and a few mysteries of her own. Renting a room in the home of the elderly, stiff-limbed Madalena (Sonia Guedes), the laconic Rita gradually opens up to her hostess while observing the village's daily laidback routines. Murat nicely milks some comic mileage from the latter, such as Madalena's redundant morning arguments with shop owner Antonio (Luiz Serra) over where her fresh rolls should be displayed. A warm, nostalgic, and beautifully lensed slice-of-life portrait, this is recommended. (T. Keogh)