O Magnata

In São Paulo, the upper middle class punk-singer Andre a.k.a. Magnata (Paulo Vilhena) spends his time in the periphery with his friends from the lower class, singing in clubs and wasting his inheritance. When he is challenged by his friends to steal a Ferrari from a store, he accepts the challenge and he goes with his pal Chivitz. They rob the car and after driving for fun, Magnata goes to the stage for a concert and asks Chivitz to get rid off the car because it would be located through the GPS system. However, Chivitz decides to drive more and is arrested by the police. Meanwhile, Magnata meets Adriana Melo (Rosane Mulholland), who has just arrived from New York, with his friend Renata that invites him for her birthday party on the next day. Magnata dates Adriana and falls in love for her, but this reckless prank stealing the Ferrari leads them to a tragic consequence.

The pretentious "O Magnata" is a typical movie where lower classes youths are the target. Exploring the life in the periphery of São Paulo, with many scenes with skateboarders, surfers and parties, it discloses a pointless and shallow melodrama following the "rebel without cause" character Magnata. In the beginning, there is no development of this lead character and the viewer has no idea of his social condition. The motives for his way of life and friendship with low-life teenagers from the lower classes are also not explained along the story. Another problem is that it is impossible to feel empathy for any character, and it is also impressive that none of them uses drugs. Last but not the least, for people from Rio de Janeiro, the accent of the characters is annoying. My vote is four.

Titlle (Brazil): "O Magnata" ("The Tycoon")