Lula: Son of Brazil (, ) is a 2009 biographical Brazilian film based on the early life of Brazilian president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. Directed by Fábio Barreto, the film was released on January 1, 2010. Agência Folha. "Filme sobre a vida de Lula começa a ser rodado em Pernambuco" . Portal Vermelho. January 23, 2009. Accessed on February 23, 2009. Upon its release, Lula, Son of Brazil was the most expensive Brazilian film ever, with a budget of over 17 million reais, BERGAMO, Mônica. "Orçamento de filme sobre Lula já passa dos R$ 17 milhões". Folha de S. Paulo. July 31, 2009. being later surpassed by Nosso Lar. "Assista a filmes brasileiros que concorrem à indicação ao Oscar". Folha de S. Paulo. September 20, 2010. Accessed on September 24, 2010. The film was unanimously chosen by a Ministry of Culture commission as Brazil's submission to the 83rd Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film, "'Lula, o Filho do Brasil' é candidato brasileiro ao Oscar 2011" . Terra. September 23, 2010. Accessed on September 24, 2010. despite not having been chosen to compete.
The film was a commercial and critical failure. Critics charged that it was election propaganda, fostering a cult of personality.
Plot The film begins in October 1945 in Garanhuns, a municipality in the countryside of Pernambuco, when Luiz Inácio da Silva, nicknamed Lula, is born as the seventh child of Dona Lindu and Aristides. Two weeks after his birth, Aristides moves to Santos, a coastal city in São Paulo, with Dona Mocinha, a cousin of Dona Lindu. Lindu raises Lula's siblings alone until December 1952, when the family moves to Santos to meet the patriarch. Upon their arrival, Dona Lindu discovers that Aristides had formed a second family with Dona Mocinha.
Aristides' two families live in the same house and, as time goes on, they struggle to survive. Lula and his siblings attend elementary school and work as street vendors. Later, Lindu leaves the alcoholic and abusive Aristides and moves with her children to São Paulo. Lula receives certification as a lathe operator and gets a formal job in the automobile industry, where he loses a finger in a press. This and his brother Ziza's arrest lead him into trade union activism, which made him nationally known in a period when such activities were forbidden. Lula is incarcerated for his activities, just as his mother dies.
Production Based on the book of the same name by journalist Denise Paraná, PARANÁ, Denise. Lula, o filho do Brasil. São Paulo. Editora Perseu Abramo, 2008. . the film narrates the story of Lula from his birth until his mother's death, when he was a 35-year-old union leader detained by the political police of the military dictatorship. The screenplay was written by Paraná, Fábio Barreto and Daniel Tendler. Writer Fernando Bonassi was hired to supervise it. ARANTES, Silvana. "Procura-se ator 'com carisma' para viver Lula". Folha Online. October 5, 2008. Accessed on November 28, 2008.
João Miguel, better known for his role in Cinema, Aspirinas e Urubus, was initially cast as Lula, but declined due to scheduling problems. Tay Lopez was then cast, but declined for medical reasons, since the role required him to gain and lose weight quickly and he suffers from hypertension. Little known 30-year-old stage actor Rui Ricardo Dias was then cast as Lula. JARDIM, Lauro. "'Lula' renunciou". Veja. January 10, 2009. Accessed on February 23, 2009. Other cast members includes Glória Pires as Lula's mother Dona Lindu, Cléo Pires as Lula's first wife Lourdes and Juliana Baroni as Marisa Letícia Lula da Silva. Lucélia Santos, a close friend of Lula, MIGUEL, Aladim. Lucélia Santos archive - President Lula's campaigns . Accessed on February 23, 2009. played a small role as his teacher. CAETANO, Maria do Rosário. "Lula, o filho do Brasil" . O Povo. February 19, 2009. Accessed on February 23, 2009. Milhem Cortaz, known for playing a corrupt police officer in the Golden Bear-winning film Tropa de Elite, was cast as Lula's father Aristides.
The film was produced by Luiz Carlos Barreto and Paula Barreto, father and sister of the director, respectively. The budget of the film was relatively high for Brazilian cinema standards: over 17 million reais (more than 9.5 million U.S. dollars). The Barretos, who supported Lula in both 2002 and 2006 presidential elections, VANNUCHI, Camilo."Companheiro Rui". Época. Accessed on February 23, 2009. claimed to have obtained financing without government funds in order to repel criticism from their work. According to Agência Estado, however, the film was sponsored by several construction firms, something extremely unusual for the Brazilian film market. Three of these companies maintain direct business with the federal government. MIRANDA, André, ÉBOLI, Evandro, and CARVALHO, Jailton de. "Cinema de resultados". O Globo. November 17, 2009.
The shooting of the film began in late January 2009 in the Pernambuco municipality of Garanhuns, Lula's hometown. TOLEDO, Marcos. "Garanhuns vive clima de mistério com filmagens sobre Lula" . Vermelho. January 24, 2009. Accessed on November 28, 2008. In February, the second phase of the production began in Santos and Guarujá, cities on the coast of São Paulo where Lula spent most of his childhood. The shooting was predicted to end on March 21, 2009. The film was then edited in time to premiere in some film festivals prior to its wide release in Brazilian cinemas on January 1, 2010.
Cast
Main cast: Rui Ricardo Dias as Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva Glória Pires as Dona Lindu Juliana Baroni as Marisa Letícia Cléo Pires as Lourdes da Silva Milhem Cortaz as Aristides Sóstenes Vidal as Ziza
Supporting cast: Guilherme Tortólio as adolescent Lula Felipe Falanga as young Lula Rayana Cavalho as Dona Mocinha Lucélia Santos as Lula's teacher Antonio Pitanga as Mr. Cristóvão Celso Frateschi as Mr. Álvaro Marcos Cesana as Cláudio Feitosa Clayton Mariano as Lambari Mariah Teixeira as Marinete Suzana Costa as midwife Jones Melo as salesman José Ramos as Pau de Arara driver Antonio Saboia as Vavá Eduardo Acaiabe as Geraldão Marat Descartes as Arnaldo Nei Piacentini as Dr. Miguel Luccas Papp as Lambari (age 15) Vanessa Bizarro as Lourdes (age 13) Maicon Gouveia as Jaime Jonas Mello as Tosinho Fernando Alves Pinto as journalist Fernanda Laranjeira as Tiana
Historical background Some facts of Lula's early life coincides with several aspects of the Brazilian history, and this is a reason why Paraná decided to write her book, which was also her Ph.D. dissertation at the University of São Paulo History School. During her research for the book, Paraná interviewed Lula himself and several people connected to him. According to her, while listening to Lula's statements, she thought that it was "a poorly written movie script, because everything fits".
Among the facts of Lula's life and the history of Brazil that "fits" together, according to the author, are the death of his first wife by malpractice during labour at the same time that Brazil had one of the highest rates in the world of death in childbirth, the migration of his family to São Paulo at the same time which Brazil was struggling with its largest internal migration wave and Lula's father developing alcoholism at the same time there was an epidemic incidence of this disease in the Northeast region of Brazil.
Soundtrack
The soundtrack was composed by Antonio Pinto. The musical taste of Lula was faithfully followed in the preparation of the soundtrack. "Lula, o Filho do Brasil - Trilha sonora original" . EMI Music Brasil. November 9, 2009. He requested the sertanejo duo Zezé Di Camargo & Luciano to record "Meu Primeiro Amor", a version of "Lejanía" by Paraguayan composer Herminio Giménez adapted into Portuguese by José Fortuna. EFE. "Paraguai pede retificação à "Rede Globo" sobre canção". Circuito Mato Grosso. December 5, 2009. The former president also requested the inclusion of two remarkable songs in his life and emotional memories: "Nossa Canção", a romantic samba by Luiz Ayrão, recorded by Nana Caymmi especially for the soundtrack, and "Desesperar Jamais" by Ivan Lins and Vitor Martins, recorded by Ivan and samba player Roberto Ribeiro. The soundtrack is complemented with songs contemporary to the years represented in the film, such as "Sentimental Demais" by Altemar Dutra, "Estúpido Cupido" by Celly Campelo, "Saudosa Maloca" by Demônios da Garoa, and even "Pra Frente Brasil", an anthem for the Brazil national football team during the 1970 FIFA World Cup. The film's soundtrack album was released a month before the film, marking the first time this had ever happened in Brazil.
Release
Although it had not been chosen by the competitive selection of the 42nd Brasilia Film Festival, the film premiered at the event's opening in the Brazilian federal capital on November 18, 2009. At least 300 employees of the presidential palace Palácio do Planalto attended. Folha de S. Paulo. "Pré-estreias de "Lula" tentam criar clima emotivo". O Globo. November 17, 2009. In Lula's home state of Pernambuco, the film premiered in Recife on November 19, being attended by several politicians and the president's relatives. On November 28, Lula himself attended the film's premiere in São Bernardo do Campo, the city where he began his political activities. The film also premiered in João Pessoa and Rio de Janeiro later in 2009. MACEDO, Socorro. "Família de Lula está ansiosa pela pré-estreia de filme no Recife" . Último Segundo. November 19, 2009. Accessed on November 19, 2009. According to Regina Rito's gossip column on newspaper O Dia, the film's international premiere was held in Washington, D.C. at the request of American president Barack Obama. "Obama pediu, e cinebiografia de Lula terá pré-estreia internacional nos EUA" . EGO. October 17, 2009. On January 1, 2010, the film received its wide release, debuting at over 500 cinemas all over Brazil. "DVD de Lula, o Filho do Brasil sairá em maio" . Rolling Stone Brasil. December 16, 2009.
Unionized workers were able to purchase the film's tickets for 5 reals (about 2,5 U.S. dollars) between November 20 and December 31, 2009, after a deal made between labour unions Central Única dos Trabalhadores and Força Sindical and the producers. Since its wide release on January 1, 2010, unionized workers were able to buy tickets with a 50% discount. Folha Online. "CUT e Força venderão ingressos do filme de Lula por R$ 5 para trabalhadores sindicalizados". Olhar Direto. November 18, 2009.
The film's DVD release took place in May 2009. It has affordable prices, from 10 to 12 reais (around 5 to 7 U.S. dollars), in order to counteract piracy. The DVD has more than 10 extra features, including an exclusive interview with Lula about the film. Upon the DVD release, Tadeu Damiani, president of the Union of Video Rentals of the State of São Paulo and member of opposition party PPS, had sent an open letter to 2,800 video rental stores in the state recommending that they should not buy or rent the film. Aranha, Ana. "Não vamos politizar o boicote…" . Época. May 24, 2010. He spread his plea throughout video rental associations and trade unions in the country. The reason he gave for starting the campaign was that Lula had watched 2 Filhos de Francisco before being released, encouraging piracy. But, there is no evidence that proves that President Lula had watched by illegal means.