To the Left of the Father

Luiz Fernando Carvalho's 2001 Brazilian film is adapted from the novel by Raduan Nassar. On the farm of an immigrant family, the father establishes the moral order of the house through the speeches he makes at the table: work, wait, suppress desire. His son André could not bear that order and has run away, and his elder brother Pedro is sent to bring him back. What drove André off was not only the father's severity but his relationship with their sister Ana, and the film states this openly. The narrative does not run straight; André's inner voice carries the text in sentences built like prayer, and the image dwells at length on the textures of earth, skin and fire. It runs close to three hours at a deliberately heavy pace. The scenes between Selton Mello and Raul Cortez are at its centre. Who it's for: viewers who like literary adaptation and formally demanding film. Who it's not for: anyone who would rather not approach incest; the film puts it at the centre.