Garapa

GARA PA borrows its title from the Brazilian term for the juice of raw sugar cane, which provides a high percentage of the diets of those living below the poverty line in Brazil. With the same frankness and urgency as he addressed police brutality and corruption in THE ELITE SQUAD, director José Padhilia now depicts the painful subjects of famine, poverty and alcoholism among Brazil's poorest.

Deliberately working against the audience's aesthetic enjoyment, Padilha does away with all embellishments. Filmed using grainy, blackand- white Super 16 stock and long, unbroken takes, GARA PA evokes the style of 60's cinema verité. The camera is a quiet observer, working in an environment that will not be softened in any way. GARA PA is an important film, able to arouse both feelings of despair and empathy as it speaks of our basal human needs in a shallow and material world.
LAURA PERKINS

Producer: Marcos Prado, Jos√© Padilha
Screenplay: Felipe Lacerda, Jos√© Padilha
Cinematography: Marcella Bourseau
Music: Yan Saldanha
Subtitle: English