From Beginning to End

I got this movie out on DVD without knowing too much about it and I was absolutely blown away. It is such a touching and romantic movie. I know it has taboo topics but they are handled so gently and with such acceptance by the film makers and the the characters within the story. It truly moved me in a way a film has never done for me before. It is probably not for everyone due to some of it's taboo content, but honestly, it should be viewed regardless. It is such an exquisite portrayal and will really make you think. I cannot praise this movie more highly. Forget the mind-numbing exploitative offerings of The Hangover or Bridesmaids, and see what great film can accomplish.

I'm not going to lengthy review this Film, there's just no need to. Let me just tell you what I thought of it. First of all, it was supposed to show you a romantic LOVE STORY, not a big drama, not science fiction, not a documentary... just a plain love story. Not a 'normal' love story though, not even in gay terms. It deals with two issues at once: Gay love and incest. But in a very gentle way, that's for sure. Seeing the boys grow up, being so fond of each other surely was nice to watch! As the boys grow older and become men, they also sexualize their relationship, which came (I have to admit that) a) too late, and b) too suddenly. One would think that adolescent boys start 'playing' a little earlier than these two did. Anyway, that was the only thing that really startled me for a moment. Other than that the film was a great watch, which surely had to do with the sheer beauty of the two main actors, especially Joao Gabriel Vasconcellos, who played the older adult brother 'Francisco'. The chemistry between the two guys is wonderful, and you want these two men to love each other forever.

I can highly recommend this film. If you want action, blood, drama, sex, drugs & Rock'n'Roll - then stay away from it. Otherwise... DO TRY!

Do Começo ao Fim - FROM BEGINNING TO END – CATCH IT ( B+ ) Brazilian movie "Do Começo ao Fim" is a visual treat along with moving performances by João Gabriel Vasconcellos and Rafael Cardoso. This movie talks about the taboo topic of half brothers falling in Incestuous relationship & Love. Though the movie deals with sensitive and hardcore subject matter but the movie not for a second seems like anything different than a Love Story. I loved what one of the reviewer mentioned on IMDb that this movie reflects the Dream World where the Incestuous Love between Half brothers is nothing more than merely LOVE. The movie starts off with Francisco & Thomás, when they are young kids. From there the whole beauty of caring for each other was represented in a very decent way plus how the mother & Francisco's father started to feel that they are more closer than they are suppose too. I loved the way movie was progressing but then suddenly the death of Pedro (Francisco's father) & 10 years later the death of their Mother changed the movie into another direction. The movie didn't show how the boys dealt with these feeling as teenagers, because I believe that's the toughest part or Maybe as I have mentioned before the director was living in Dream World. so, from there we were left with Intimate Love of Francisco & Thomás. The Love scene between João Gabriel Vasconcellos and Rafael Cardoso was pasteurized exquisitely & the dialogues were splendidly powerful. After that movie went off to Love & Long Distance relationship between Francisco & Thomás, which was heartfelt to watch because of outstanding chemistry between João Gabriel Vasconcellos and Rafael Cardoso. João Gabriel Vasconcellos and Rafael Cardoso are exceptionally gorgeous and their chemistry and performance was very natural & touchy. There was not a second when I felt like they were merely two actors playing falling in Love because the way they behave around each other & looked at each other, it was all LOVE. Lucas Cotrin as young Francisco & Gabriel Kaufmann as young Thomás were treat to watch. They were funny, caring & shared an awesome chemistry. Júlia Lemmertz looked elegant & exquisite, if I was the director I would have loved to see the whole family dealing with this issue but somehow Director lived the Dream Charming World. Fábio Assunção Jean Pierre Noher and Louise Cardoso were good in their parts. Overall, watch it for Erotic & Intimate chemistry between João Gabriel Vasconcellos and Rafael Cardoso along with Stunning Cinematography.

The movie tackles with straight-forward candidness the biggest taboo of western societies: the incest. To top it all off, the relationship happens between two brothers. The movie struck me as extremely poetic, with great cinematography and a LOT of chemistry between the main actors. The love scenes will make you gasp with their intensity and sense of poetry, but the film lacks any real reason d'être.

The main subject in hand, with all of it's richness and subtleties, gets pushed to the side, while some other less interesting plot takes on from half the movie onwards.

I did enjoy the film quite a bit, especially for the ease with which it talks about a very taboo subject.

Oh, and I must mention the main actors are, naturally, extremely hot.

The filmmaker starts off with an intriguing premise. How much would love flourish if we lived in a world uncomplicated by belief systems that thrive on shame and conformity? In my eyes, the filmmaker is a dreamer. Not a realist. And it was refreshing and fascinating to watch as the story unfolded. It was profound.

The story begins with a boy at the age of six who is escorted by a nurse to see his newborn brother. Immediately, the filmmaker is setting up the rules of his idyllic world. And the rules are consistent throughout. The father is nowhere to be seen. In fact, there are no adults other than an impartial nurse who leads the boy to the person who will ultimately be the love of his life.

The six year-old brother looks into his baby brother's eyes through the viewing window and a profound connection is formed. The filmmaker makes his first point. Could this mysterious thing we call love start even before birth? In most of the best love films that I've seen, and I've seen plenty, when two lovebirds meet the love of their life they have that experience of, haven't we met before? Or, I feel like I've known you all my life.

I won't go into the whole story but I was fascinated by the filmmaker's decision to leave as much conflict out of the picture as possible. He showed us hints of potential conflicts but wisely didn't emphasize them. It was a brave choice. Abranches' vision would prefer to keep the boy's perpetually in the womb of their mother. Which is another important theme throughout the story.

Abranches give us a vision of his Garden of Eden before the fall and the Great Conflict. Before Adam hid himself in the bushes when God walked the grounds and he asked Adam, why are you hiding? I'm naked. And God became angry, who told you thou wast naked? What kind of world would that be like? I can only imagine but I caught a glimpse of it up there on the big silver screen. I highly recommend From Beginning to End.