The Invisible Life of Eurídice Gusmão

This year’s winner in the Un Certain Regard Cannes competition is a melodrama about two loving sisters, 18-year-old Eurídice and 20-year-old Guida, each of whom has nurtured a dream of her own: Eurídice of becoming a professional pianist, and Guida of love. But the social reality of women in 1950s Rio, reflected in the cruelty of their conservative father and other men in their lives, separates them, and launches each on a different strife-ridden path. The film’s delicate and complex plot line is based on Martha Batalha’s contemporary novel, and tells the story of women striving to live with independence and meaning. Director Karim Aïnouz employs a highly stylized approach, complemented by the gifted Hélène Louvart’s cinematography, to portray the heroines’ transparent lives.