This Brazilian movie tells the story of Arminto, the only son of a wealthy family who, after living years away, comes back to his hometown in the North when he receives news that his father was ill. Upon arriving, he is confronted with ghosts and secrets from the past, which take shape mainly in the figure of Florita, a housemaid who served as a lover to his father and second mother to himself.
From the very beginning, director Guilherme Coelho opts for a slow narrative which, rather than being contemplative, almost paralyzes the film by the lack of ease with which the characters interact with each other. The dialogues, extracted directly from the book on which the movie was based, don't ring true on the screen and the moments of silence that follow in the middle of conversations turn into a succession of long pauses that not only break the rhythm but also dilute the impact and emotion of the scenes. This happens mostly in the first half of the movie.
But even with clear flaws like these, the movie is still able to grab our interest. There are a few reasons for that, but let's start with the cast.
Actor Daniel Oliveira is fully committed in the lead role and can make us suffer with the journey of obsession and madness that Arminto goes through, even if the reasons for the drastic actions that the character takes in the second half of the film never become quite clear. However, it is actress Dira Paes who commands the screen with her presence.
With physical traits and attitude typical from a native of the Amazon region, the actress (featured in the American film The Emerald Forest, 1985) is simply mesmerizing from the first moment she comes into play. Incorporating a kind of indigenous femme fatale, Florita exudes a great seductive power not only because of her sexuality, but especially because of her strong belief in the legends and myths of the Amazon, which she has instilled in the subconscious of Arminto since he was a child. When at one point we see the actress in the dark, squatting and leaning against the wall, the image that immediately comes to mind was that of a jaguar, silent and sneaky, but whose wild look in her eyes makes it clear that she's just waiting for the right moment to attack. The incandescent relationship between Florita and Arminto is the emotional engine that keeps our interest until literally the last minute of the film.
And if on one hand the director lacked the ability to decrease the literary language of the script, on the other there is no denying his immense talent to create breathtaking images. Since the enigmatic sequence that opens the film to the harrowing final scene that requires the viewer to connect the dots for himself, the director proves to be extremely skilled at building an atmosphere that evokes the mysticism and mysteries of the forest but at the same time never fails to express the harsh reality of the way of life of the small communities along the river. Yes, the forest images are beautiful, but they are surrounded by a constant atmosphere of decay and a growing sense of paranoia and madness. We are in a land of dreams, but at any moment the dreams can turn into a nightmare, and the director turns this threat into something tangible.
The film therefore left me deeply divided. I can not ignore its flaws, but I also can not deny the intoxicating effect its images and atmosphere had on me. This is one of those movies that deserve a second visit, where the balance between its faults and its qualities can finally lean to one side. For now, I just remember an old saying that goes "...the unsuccessful attempt of some may be more spectacular than the victory of others". At the very least, Orfãos do Eldorado is one of those failed attempts which nonetheless are quite spectacular.
