Kleber Mendonça Filho directs Sonia Braga, Humberto Carrão and Irandhir Santos in this Brazilian drama where an ageing music critic finds herself the final holdout when her apartment building is bought up by uncaring developers.

A strong central performance carries a very relaxed yet far-reaching arthouse film. We follow Clara’s memories of her home, current strained relationships (some sexually frank, others joyfully social) and her silent battle with the corporation who want to tear down her building, forcing her to sell through passive aggressive intrusions. Both cancer and termites visually signify the quiet, insidious legal corruption she battles against. You’ll need patience (and a willingness to know that nothing will be fully resolved) to get all the intelligent pleasures out of this meandering film.

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