Os Saltimbancos Trapalhões

Four people working at a circus, Didi, Dedé, Mussum and Zacarias, are the only act that makes the audience laugh. But the owner, the Baron, exploits them and the magician Assis makes things worse. The four escape the circus with Karina and try to form their own troupe and find somewhere to perform. J.B. Tanko's film adapts the 1977 musical Os Saltimbancos, whose songs are by Chico Buarque. Buarque also signed the screenplay for the film and wrote new songs; the musical's Italian source rests on the tale of the Bremen Town Musicians. Pieces such as História de uma Gata and Minha Canção carried over into the film. It is one of the best-known films by the group Os Trapalhões. Renato Aragão, Dedé Santana, Mussum and Zacarias are in the cast, with Lucinha Lins as Karina. Who it's for: Viewers who know Brazilian children's cinema, musical family films, and Os Trapalhões. Who it's not for: The humour is entirely tied to Brazilian television of the period and most of the jokes are lost from outside. The narrative is also very loose.