SPOILERS
This is one of the most extraordinary films I've seen in a couple of years. It's easy to dismiss as a Dirty Old Man's fantasy, but it's D.O.M. fantasy as an art form. Monteiro has invented a screen persona for himself that looks like Jacques Tati had designed a decent late-in-life role for Woody Allen, less neurotic and more rustic. Deus is a wacky old bum who permanently oscillates between poetic wisdom and foolishness. The sets sometimes have the poetic quality of a Tarkovski film, but often enough, glimpses of Gilliamish madness creep in. Shots are static and beautifully composed, a typical feat of art movies which ironically highlights the comical aspects of this film. The story is simple: Deus receives a suitcase full of money from a Heavenly Messenger, spends it on girls and the good life, only to find real love when he's broke. The cultural background of this is clearly Catholic, but nothing should be taken too serious about this film. In its visual inventiveness and its strange take on art and comedy, it seems to me absolutely unique.
This is one of the most extraordinary films I've seen in a couple of years. It's easy to dismiss as a Dirty Old Man's fantasy, but it's D.O.M. fantasy as an art form. Monteiro has invented a screen persona for himself that looks like Jacques Tati had designed a decent late-in-life role for Woody Allen, less neurotic and more rustic. Deus is a wacky old bum who permanently oscillates between poetic wisdom and foolishness. The sets sometimes have the poetic quality of a Tarkovski film, but often enough, glimpses of Gilliamish madness creep in. Shots are static and beautifully composed, a typical feat of art movies which ironically highlights the comical aspects of this film. The story is simple: Deus receives a suitcase full of money from a Heavenly Messenger, spends it on girls and the good life, only to find real love when he's broke. The cultural background of this is clearly Catholic, but nothing should be taken too serious about this film. In its visual inventiveness and its strange take on art and comedy, it seems to me absolutely unique.