Seus ossos e seus olhos

SEUS OSSOS E SEUS OLHOS, angesiedelt im Mittelklasse-Milieu von São Paulo, präsentiert eine Serie von streng komponierten Vignetten, in denen viel geredet und wenig gehandelt wird. Ein schwuler Regisseur trifft eine Reihe von Leuten, mit denen er in Konversationen oder in sexuellen Begegnungen die Magie des Alltäglichen ausmisst. Mit ganz eigenem Tonfall widmet sich der Film vor allem dem Dazwischen der Erzählung: lange Close-ups auf Gesichter, Studien der Selbstgenügsamkeit und statische Impressionen von Theaterproben. Das vermeintlich Nebensächliche wird zur Essenz und das Werk zu einem kinematografischen Vexierspiel zwischen Realität und Fiktion. (Thomas Mießgang)

João’s face is full of agitation as he speaks into his phone, but once Irene arrives, it evaporates. At home, her own words carry a similar restlessness; when she goes to get beer from the kitchen, João tries to get comfortable, all manner of rhythmic motions, all in vain. Afterwards, in bed with his boyfriend Álvaro, they each speak at length before starting to embrace, it comes across like a loose choreography, like the one followed by those who twirl and dance in the space between the buildings. Life in São Paulo, João’s life in São Paulo, seems like a cycle of monologues and movements that interlock and overlap, striving to express ideas impossible to fully articulate, love, desire, memory, the current state. But is this real life or merely its representation? João makes films and Álvaro is an actor, so that might explain the different takes, the lines rehearsed, perhaps never to be performed, the stories that stem from other people or places, the pictures staring down from the walls. Irene speaks of all those endless narratives, of getting the details right, of how to forget thirst while feeling thirsty. You can try and remember the order of things but how can you say it all? (James Lattimer)