I’m Still Here Review
International Feature and Best Picture Oscars contender I’m Still Here is a study of a family’s experience during military dictatorship in Brazil.
I’m Still Here. Credit: Sony Pictures Classics
I’m Still Here is an adaptation of Marcelo Paiva's memoir directed by Walter Salles. Salles’ first narrative feature in over a decade tells an affecting, harrowing true story set during the military dictatorship in Brazil. It’s Brazil’s entry for the Best International Feature Film category for the Academy Awards this year; this morning, the Academy announced that the film clinched a nomination not just for International Feature but also for Best Picture.
The film begins in Rio de Janeiro in 1971. Rubens Paiva (Selton Mello) lives an idyllic life there with his wife, Eunice (Fernanda Torres), and their five children—their carefree, happy lives a type of resistance to the bleak situation in their country. Rubens, an ex-congressman, is taken in for questioning by military goons and doesn’t return. The film chronicles Eunice’s journey as she struggles to find out what happened to her husband and deal with the aftermath and wreckage of her family.
I’m Still Here. Credit: Sony Pictures Classics
Fernanda Torres’ portrayal of Eunice is brilliant and heartbreaking. Her performance deservingly won her a Golden Globe this year and an Oscar nomination. Multiple actors play each of her children as a lot of time passes over the course of the film. We spend the most time with the youngest actors: Valentina Herszage, Luiza Kozovski, Barbara Luz, Cora Mora, and Guilherme Silveria—all of them excellent as Vera, Eliana, Nalu, Babiu, and Marcelo. In a particularly heartfelt turn, legendary actress Fernanda Montenegro, the mother of star Fernanda Torres, plays the older version of her daughter’s role. The film’s ensemble is outstanding, and the love within the characters’ family is palpable. To me, this is one of the most significant contributors to the film’s success, along with Salles’ strong direction.
My main criticism of the movie is that because of its structure, it feels like it has multiple endings; I thought the film was over a couple of times, and then it continued. I understand this is because of how some real events transpired and gaps in time. I wish that it was handled more smoothly in the edit. This is a minor issue for an otherwise excellent movie.
I’m Still Here. Credit: Sony Pictures Classics
I can’t recall an American film on this subject since Costa-Gavras’ Missing, made in 1982 and starring Jack Lemmon as a conservative businessman who travels to Chile in search of his son, American journalist Charles Horman, who disappeared after the coup. I’m Still Here, like Missing, illuminates injustices that were all too common in South American countries during tumultuous dictatorships, things that most of the United States' population hasn’t experienced or could even conceive of. 2023 Golden Globe winner and Oscar nominee Argentina 1985 covers similar ground, based on the story about a lawyer who prosecuted the heads of the dictatorship there. Still, this film is far more harrowing because of its focus on a family going through the horrors directly. While a broad American audience won’t see I’m Still Here, I hope it helps those who see it learn about what happened and what is possible.
I haven’t seen three of this year's five International Feature nominees, but I’m Still Here is a powerful contender. It’s well deserving of recognition in that category and for Best Picture.
I’m Still Here is in theaters now, distributed by Sony Pictures Classics in the US.
