Hour of the Star

If you've ever read Lispector's text, Amaral's film is a must-see. You may be wondering how Amaral could possibly manage to capture Lispector's musings on the act of writing or questions regarding representation as they are presented through her narrator, Rodrigo. Pay close attention, and you'll find your answer. Although Rodrigo is absent from the film, he is symbolically present via Amaral's juxtaposition of Macabea's humble life, and the reality that is presented to her within an industrialized society. I personally believe that this is not a representation of the original text, but an appropriation of certain underlying themes within it. As you will see, Amaral manages to give us her own perspective and cultural critique of representation via the artistic medium of which she is a part. In this sense, the film stands alone, independent of the novella, with a few strong threads tying the two together. For anyone who is interested in the question of representation within the cultural industry, commodity fetishism, capitalism, feminism, etc., you need to watch this film, and then you need to watch it again.