Announcing the Sixth Luso World Cinema blogathon

 

We’re still here. Brazil didn’t win its second consecutive Oscar, but our nominated film “The Secret Agent” (above) for sure created a buzz. Meanwhile, our desire to celebrate Luso Pride and the contribution made by Lusophone actors, directors, casts and crews for the world of cinema has not grown any smaller. With this in mind, Beth from Spellbound with Beth Ann and me here at Crítica Retrô are proud to announce that the Luso World Cinema blogathon is back for the sixth time, starting on June 19^th (Brazilian Cinema Day) and going to the 21^st.

If you want to take part, here are the rules:

The Luso World Cinema Blogathon once again accepts posts about films made in Lusophone countries, that is, countries that speak Portuguese – see the list below –, and film stars with Luso heritage, that means, film stars of Portuguese descent. This list includes natives like Carmen Miranda, Rodrigo Santoro, Sônia Braga, Raul Roulien, Maria de Medeiros and also Keanu Reeves, Mary Astor, Louise Fazenda, Tom Hanks, Joe DeRita, James Franco, Daniel Brühl, Auli'i Cravalho, Nestor Paiva, Amy Poehler,  Dorothy DeBorba and many more you can find listed HERE. You can write an overview of those people's lives or careers or focus on a specific film or TV show they made. We also accept the quite rare portraits of Portuguese, Brazilian or other Luso people in film, like in 1937’s “Captain Courageous”, in which Spencer Tracy plays a Portuguese sailor, for instance.

Here are a few lists of movies from Lusophone countries:

List of films from Portugal: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Portuguese_films

List of films from Brazil: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Brazilian_films

List of films from Cape Verde: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Cape_Verdean_films

List of films from Mozambique: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Mozambican_films

List of films from Angola: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Angolan_films

List of films from Guinea-Bissau:  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Bissau-Guinean_films

List of films from São Tomé and Príncipe: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cinema_of_S%C3%A3o_Tom%C3%A9_and_Pr%C3%ADncipe

List of films from Equatorial Guinea: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Equatoguinean_films

List of films from East Timor: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:East_Timorese_films

 

The list of contributions so far:

Crítica Retrô: Alô Alô Carnaval (1936)

Lost & Found Films: The restoration of "Limite" (1931)

A Shroud of Thoughts: Karen Valentine 

Classic Film and TV Corner: Mary Astor in "Dodsworth" (1936)

The Midnite Drive-In: Blame it on Rio (1984)

Sally Silverscreen: The Naked Jungle (1954)

Taking Up Room: Carmen Miranda in "Springtime in the Rockies" (1942)

Moon in Gemini: Desmundo (2002)

You can grab a banner here and spread the news!

Limite (1931)

Maria de Medeiros

Carmen Miranda

Nha Fala (2002)

Cavalo Dinheiro (2014)

Dorothy DeBorba

Barbie Ferreira

Introducing Lost and Found Films

 

I did it! After years of having this idea in my mind, I started a new blog to talk about film preservation and review lost movies.

Wait, WHAT?

Let’s go back in time.

In the far-away year of 2018 I dug deep in Brazilian film magazines, these tell-all publications that didn’t care about spoilers, to reconstruct the plots of some sadly lost movies. I did this for the publication Única, in which I reconstructed the plots of the movies Alfred Hitchcock worked in before becoming a director, back in England. And then I did the same for my blog: I reconstructed the plot for one Holy Grail of lost films: 1919’s “The Miracle Man”. The results: a great book on Hitchcock and a very long but informative blog post, so far the one that gave me the most pride to have written.

And then I thought: what if I could do it again, and more often?

So the seed for “Lost and Found Films” was planted. In the years between the idea and the real debut of the blog, I have researched more about lost films, watched a few films that were once considered lost, and prepared for the big day. As many of you may know, I started taking part in the online version of the Le Giornate del Cinema Muto, the Pordenone Silent Film Festival, and two great things happened: I was part of the Zoom Collegium in 2020 and the following year I won the Russell Merritt Prize for best essay writing about a forgotten film: “La Tempesta in un Cranio”, from 1921.

“Lost and Found Films” debuted this past May and is updated monthly. I already amassed a good amount of readers by advertising the blogs on social networks (do you already follow me on BlueSky?). I have a lot of great plans for this new endeavor without, of course, ever abandoning my first and main blog, this Crítica Retrô.

It all started with Lon Chaney, seven years ago. To pay a tribute to him, whose early career is comprised of mostly lost films, I made the banner above, with an image from the unfortunately lost, and much sought after, “London After Midnight”, from 1927. Maybe it will be the focus of a future article in Lost and Found Films? Keep close and we’ll see.

The Fifth Luso World Cinema blogathon is here!

 You blinked and the big day arrived!

It's June 19th, Brazilian Cinema Day. On June 19th, 1898, the Italian entrepreneur Affonso Segreto shot the first film in Brazil, a view from his ship pointing towards the Baía de Guanabara. This film is now lost - in fact, the earliest surviving film from Brazil is from 1909, and the earliest surviving fiction is from 1913 - but the date remains as a way to celebrate a rich cinema, that now finally has an Oscar!

Me and my co-host Beth Ann from Spellbound with Beth Ann chose the date to celebrate all things related to Luso cinema and Lusophone heritage. It's been an honor to co-host this blogathon, as every year I learn more and broaden my horizons.

Without further ado, here are the fabulous contributions for the blogathon:

I write about Silvino Santos, a filmmaker from the jungle, and the parallels with my great-grandfather.

Gill from Realweeiemidget Reviews focuses on the caper "That Man from Rio" (1964).

Kristina from Speakeasy chronicles her experience watching two movies with Coffin Joe (aka Zé do Caixão)

Maddy from Classic Film & TV Corner highlights the trajectory of the Miranda Sisters, Carmen and Aurora.

Quiggy from The Midnite Drive-In talks about a bizarre love triangle in a movie set in the Amazon, "Creature from the Black Lagoon" (1954).

Ruth from Silver Screenings brings a Casablanca knock-off, the low-budget film "Storm Over Lisbon" (1944).

At A Shroud of Thoughts, Terence tells us about the life and career of Nestor Paiva, a character actor with more than 400 roles in 30 years.

Debbie from Moon in Gemini reviews the delightful "Tune In Tomorrow" (1990), a romantic comedy with Keanu Reeves, who has Portuguese blood. 

At Taking Up Room, Rebecca shines a light on Mary Astor's performance in "Dodsworth" (1936).

Sally from 18 Cinema Lane reviews three episodes of Touched by an Angel guest starring Jasmine Guy.

My co-host Beth closes the event by telling about that time when TCM called Carmen Miranda a Latin AND Hispanic icon.

It was again a lot of fun! Obrigada!

The Third Luso World Cinema Blogathon is here!

 It's May 5th! This means that today is World Portuguese Language Day... and also the first day of the Third Luso World Cinema blogathon! Beth Ann and I, your hostesses, couldn't be more thrilled to share the love of all things Luso in film!

Now, the entries!

I kick things off with the two Carmens of Brazilian cinema: Carmen Santos and Carmen Miranda.

Gill from Realweegiemidgtet Reviews showcases Daniel Brühl in "Good Bye Lenin!" (2003)

Ruth from Silver Screenings brings the Mozambican documentary “Kuxa Kanema - The Birth of Cinema” (2002).

Rebecca from Taking Up Room shines a light on Carmen Miranda in “A Date with Judy” (1948).

Next up is Raquel from Out of the Past with a review of Sarah Maldoror's Sambizanga (1972), the first fiction feature made by a Portuguese-speaking country in Africa.

Co-hostess Beth from Spellbound with Beth Ann analyzes three classic films with Portuguese characters.

The Second Luso World Cinema blogathon - Day 3

Who is ready for more fun in Portuguese? After a great start with DAY 1 here and DAY 2 at Beth’s place, we’re back with more wonderful contributions.

J-Dub from Dubsism talks about space exploration, the concept of impossible and sports world - all in a review of “Apollo 11” (1995), starring Tom Hanks, one of the nicest guys with Portuguese heritage. 

Magical realism is brought by Debbie from Moon in Gemini as she reviews “Erendira”, a 1983 film directed by Ruy Guerra and starring Claudia Ohana - both are Brazilian!

The country of East Timor is not 20 years old yet, but its history can teach us powerful lessons. This is what Dan from Crimson Kimono shows by reviewing two films about the invasion of this Portuguese-speaking territory in 1975.

My co-hostess Beth from Spellbound by Movies reviews Casa de Lava (aka Down to Earth, 1994), a film by Portuguese director Pedro Costa set in Cape Verde, a former Portuguese colony in Africa.