O Casamento de Louise

"O casamento de Louise" (Louisa's marriage) is a witty screwball comedy that bounces from one beautifully crafted line of dialog to the next, as we are privy to the inner monologues of two women: Louise, a wealthy violinist, and her maid/nanny/cook/secretary Luiza. Besides their social level, the women are opposite also in temperament, intelligence, and ability - Louise is "theory" and Luiza "practice". From birth they seem to have led parallel lives that play out right down to the level of their moment to moment thoughts. Of course parallel can also mean exactly opposite, and from this comes much of the humor of the film.

On a star-crossed day, a procession of likable men visit Louise (and Luiza) with comical results. Who (if any) will be the one to marry Louise as the title implies? Although the movie pokes fun at pretensions in general and Brazilian social structure in particular, it does so gently and without the slightest heaviness. If this movie were a drink it would be a caipirinha - tart, sweet and refreshing.