Review of Black Orpheus (1959) by Dave J — 30 May 2011

Modern setting of the Greek myth of Orpheus and Eurydice, transplanted to steamy and sultry Rio De Janeiro during the height of Carnaval. Shot on location in color, French director Marcel Camus uses the exotic locales to great effect - the samba and bossa nova beats are omnipresent while the colorful costumes and sinewy dances keep the eye enthralled.

Lovely Marpessa Dawn, as the heroine, has recently arrived in Rio to visit her cousin Sarafina, while avoiding the grim spectre of death (or a jealous lover?) hot on her heels. By chance she meets and falls in love with a young trolley conductor (his occupation is a nice nod to the legend) played by a lithe and guitar-strumming Breno Mello.

Believing Eurydice dead, Orpheus descends into the bleak underworld of the city's Missing Persons Bureau (I think I see perhaps where Terry Gilliam got the inspiration for the title of his film 'Brazil' now) - while being hounded by his jilted lover Mira, as terrifying a personification of the ancient Furies as one could wish.

A dizzying pageant, this film deservedly won the Oscar for Best Foreign Film for 1959.