How were 10 personalities who were represented in Brazilian cinema

Brazilian cinema has excellent biopics — that is, films inspired by the trajectory of real personalities. In certain cases, feature films of this type portray deep and curious aspects of celebrities, as is the case of Elis Regina or Wilson Simonal. But productions of this genre can also tell unique real stories of people who were not part of the celebrity world.

As biopic plots are usually super interesting and tend to pique one’s curiosity, the awesome.club investigated how ten personalities were represented in Brazilian cinema. Oh! And has bonus at the end of the list. Check out!

The great carioca singer and composer Wilson Simonal was a true phenomenon of popularity in the 1960s and 1970s. However, his face may not be so familiar to most Brazilians; because despite the rapid career rise, the fall was strong. For political reasons, Simonal ended up being “excluded” by the artistic class of the time.

Actor Fabrício Boliveira faced the mission of interpreting the entire swing and charm de Simonal in the biopic released in 2018. As the singer had an unrivaled voice, the production chose to use dubbing.

Actor Wagner Moura played the embezzler Marcelo Nascimento da Rocha in the film VIPs: True Stories of a Liar, which hit the big screen in 2010. A great curiosity about the backstage of the film is that the actor played the role without knowing the real protagonist of the story. “There was no contact of any kind. When I read the script, I forgot this guy existed”, revealed Wagner Moura.

Marcelo da Rocha is known for being the “biggest scammer in Brazil”. One of the most memorable episodes of his career was the time he gave an interview to Amaury Jr. impersonating businessman Henrique Constantino, son of the owner of the airline Gol. The scene was portrayed in a humorous way in theaters, with the participation of the presenter himself. “The way was to laugh at this monkey”, commented Amaury.

The story of Bruna Surfistinha, who was played by actress Deborah Secco in theaters, is well known by Brazilians. But did you already know the real face of Raquel Pacheco?

In an interview with What’s This Story, Porchat?, Deborah Secco revealed that the preparation of the actors was unconventional. “For the first and only time, I agreed to live the film’s story in real time. So we got an apartment and went there. Me, the actor who played my father, the actress who played my mother, and we lived family days. In real time, without a camera, without anything, so that we can feel real emotions”.

During this lab, out of the blue, the casting coach would send notes asking the actors to do certain actions. All based on improvisation. Seems to have been pretty intense, no?

The 2009 film Jean Charles tells the story of the Brazilian electrician who was killed by agents of the London Metropolitan Police after being mistaken for a fugitive terrorist. Actor Selton Mello plays the lead role in the feature, which has a format very close to the documentary. Even director Henrique Goldman began his film career as a documentary filmmaker.

“The film is not only documentary in the way it is filmed, but also in the way it is written and acted, always with the idea of ​​telling something very real about Jean, his family and the reality of Brazilians living abroad. It is a total fiction on top of real facts”, explained the director.

The concern to maintain a realistic tone in the film was so great that the director included two people who had really lived with the Brazilian: Jean Charles’ cousin, Patrícia Armani and the electrician’s boss in London, Maurício Varlotta.

The famous clown Bozo, who was successful on SBT’s programming, has had more than 15 performers since 1980. But it was the controversial trajectory of artist Arlindo Barreto that inspired the film Bingo: The King of the Mornings🇧🇷

The film mixes real events with fictional elements. For example, Arlindo and Gretchen had a relationship in real life, but it was before the artist took on the role of Bozo — contrary to what happens in the film. The artist’s participation in Bozo’s program actually happened.

The story of how the Brazilian psychiatrist Nise da Silveira revolutionized mental treatment in Brazil and introduced art as occupational therapy is portrayed in the feature Nise: The Heart of Madness🇧🇷 Actress Glória Pires took on the role of the doctor and said that it was a “very intense” two months of recording.

“I see her trajectory as a little ant’s work that ended up making Nise a giant”, said the actress. “She started working in a second-rate sector and has become a reference in the area until today”, she added.

Have you watched the movie The Storyteller🇧🇷 The biographical feature, from 2009, is inspired by the trajectory of Roberto Carlos Ramos, who is a pedagogue and storyteller.

In real life, Roberto’s mother left him at the State Foundation for the Well-Being of Minors (Febem) — currently Fundação Casa —, believing that the institution could provide education, food and a better future for her son. However, after several escape attempts, Roberto Carlos’ case ended up being classified by the institution as “irrecoverable”. The film portrays how love, respect, education and dedication can transform the future of children.

Three actors from Minas Gerais played the storyteller on the big screen: “Daniel Henrique plays him at age 6; Paulinho Mendes, aged 13; and Cleiton Santos plays him as an adult”, explained director Luiz Villaça.

The greatness of singer Elis Regina was interpreted by actress Andréia Horta in the movies — and the similarity between the two is striking, don’t you think? The film Elis portrays the trajectory of one of the greatest voices that Brazil has ever had and gives an excellent “lesson” on MPB.

Some important and contradictory aspects of Elis’ life were excluded from the biopic, such as her proximity to singer Rita Lee. However, the success of the film was so great that it won a revamped version for television. In the miniseries Elis: Living is better than dreaming, actress Mel Lisboa had the honor of playing the “queen of Brazilian rock”. “When I saw Mel Lisboa dressed as Rita Lee for the first time, I almost fell over backwards”, joked Andréia Horta.

Do you know the true story behind the movie Caramuru: The Invention of Brazil🇧🇷 Caramuru was the nickname given by the Tupinambás to the Portuguese Diogo Álvares Correia, who was shipwrecked in 1510 in Bahia. He lived for decades in Brazil, delved into local customs and came to be respected by the indigenous people.

With a lot of humour, the film, by Guel Arraes, narrates the first contact of the Tupinambás with Caramuru (played by Selton Mello) and his love affair with the Indian woman Paraguaçu (Camila Pitanga). In real life, she was the daughter of a cacique and married a Portuguese adventurer. The couple spent some time in France, where Paraguaçu was baptized into Catholicism in 1528 and given the Christian name. Katherine du Brasil (Catarina from Brazil).

The tragic story of German Olga Benário, which involves her romance with Luís Carlos Prestes, was portrayed in the feature film by director Jayme Monjardim in 2004. the role of the militant. In an interview, the artist revealed that this work made her “a little insecure”, as she should play a character with a “very strong dramatic load”.

“The big question is that no matter how much we study, prepare ourselves, we always end up asking ourselves: will I be able to pass with the fidelity that the character needs? Will I be able to be true? At the same time, because it is a character that existed in real life, you have to be careful when interpreting it”, said Camila.

The film Sergio entered as a bonus on our list, because despite not being a Brazilian production, the plot is inspired by the real story of the Brazilian diplomat of the United Nations (UN), Sergio Vieira de Mello. Actor Wagner Moura plays the protagonist of this sweeping biographical drama, which involves the consequences of the US invasion of Iraq.

Throughout his career, Wagner Moura participated in a series of projects inspired by real events, such as himself vips (which we mentioned earlier) and narcos (series in which he plays Pablo Escobar). But after acting SergioWagner said he prefers to bring fictional characters to life.

“I much prefer to play characters that I have no obligation to anyone’s life, you know. That I don’t have the responsibility to tell the person’s story, “said the actor.

Which of the above pairs are you most similar to? Did you remember any other movies inspired by real events that were left out of this list? tell the awesome.club in the comments.