The sea becomes a mirror for reflection in this touching short film from Brazil. Enzo Gois plays Tomé, a curious young boy who lives with adult fisherman Reinaldo (Heraldo de Deus). One day, they catch a remora, a parasitic fish that the older man dismisses as useless. Seeing some parallel between the unwanted catch and his own relationship with Reinaldo, Tomé drifts away from the fishing boat on a small craft, only to become separated and lost. As Reinaldo searches, the bond between the two is reevaluated.
There’s something rather beautiful about the way in which Boccaletti allows his audience to feel the emotion of a situation rather than weigh it down with specifics. We do not know the exact reason why man and boy feel so distant, or even what their specific relationship is, but the opening exchange and the beautiful final lines do everything needed to convey how they feel. It’s an interesting device in a story with a limited running time, allowing you to just sit with a situation where these two must confront their place in the world.
Heraldo de Deus has an intriguing, natural approach to his performance. Much of the sparse dialogue requires you to read between the lines, and he does a wonderful job of showing you the thoughts beneath. Likewise, young Gois makes Tomé endearingly innocent, framing that childlike curiosity in a way that works so well with the tone of the film.
The film is also utterly gorgeous to look at, a real achievement given how unforgiving it can be to film on water. Cinematographer Renan Benedito captures the sea as tranquil but vast, with an isolation that leaves Reinaldo with no choice but to look inward as he searches. This, combined with an emotive score from composer Fernando Martins, allows everything to unfold in an almost poetic fashion.
A graceful story of bonding and identity, Bijupirá is an accomplished exercise in telling a lot while saying a little. It would be very interesting to see what Boccaletti and his collaborators could do with a broader canvas.
Bijupirá premiered at the Avanca Film Festival.
