For the third day of the blogathon, I’ve taken over hosting duties from Lê at
Crítica Retrô. She did a great job hosting days one and two! Today you have two profiles and three movie reviews to dig into. The figures and their cinematic works come from Portugal, Brazil, and the United States.
Rich Watson from Wide Screen World originally was to write about Manoel de Oliveira’s FRANCISCA (1981), but instead he delves into the lengthy career of the director. In the process, he shows a nuanced understanding of Portugal’s political history and the concept of Lusophones.
MovieRob reviews a Mary Astor-Humphrey Bogart-Sydney Greenstreet vehicle that somehow escaped my attention, ACROSS THE PACIFIC (1942). The suspense thriller takes place right before Pearl Harbor. Find out what he thinks of the war movie and the chemistry between its leads!
Spellbound by Movies guest contributor Ana Roland shines the light on Brazil’s most famous export since Carmen Miranda, Sônia Braga. Besides her talent and beauty, she’s become known for her political activism.
Debra Vega over at Moon in Gemini revisits DOÑA AND HER TWO HUSBANDS, a film she first saw in the theatre. The comedy was Brazil’s number one box office record holder for thirty-five years, yet its contemporary reviewers didn’t see its appeal. Debra explains why they were wrong.
Lea Stans at Silent-ology, a site dedicated to silent film, is writing a biography of Portuguese-American comedienne Louise Fazenda. Lea shares with us a review of one of Fazenda’s more obscure movies, a Keystone flick called A BEAR AFFAIR (1915). Spoiler: There’s a real bear she acts alongside!
This post is part of the Luso World Cinema Blogathon!
