Hour of the Star (1985)

"A profound testament of our time...  Andrew Sarris, The Village Voice
"A gem of a movie. Suzana Amaral's first feature is truly an astounding achievement.  Kathleen Carroll, New York Daily News
"Quietly magnificent. A genuinely unforgettable performance by Marcelia Cartaxo.  Michael Wilmington, The Los Angeles Times

Editor's Note Macabea is an impoverished young woman who moves to the city of Sao Paolo from the northeast countryside of Brazil. With no chance for success, she finds moments of happiness through hope and fantasy.

	Fernando Montenegro
	Jose Dumont
	Marcelia Cartaxo
	Tamara Taxman
	Assuncao Hernandes - Producer
	Clarice Lispector - Based On Novel By
	Edgar Moura - Cinematographer
	Ide Lacreta - Editor
	Marcus Vinicius - Musical Score
	Suzana Amaral - Writer
	Suzana Amaral - Director

Suzana Amaral's debut feature explores the poignant life of Macabéa, an inarticulate and poor young woman who has left her rural home in Brazil's northeast to make her way in the city of Sao Paulo. Her attempts to succeed in the workplace often end in failure, and her romance with Olímpico, another social outcast longing for something better, does not fulfill her dreams of love.| Then a seer promises that a wonderful event will transform Macabéa's life -- but once again, reality is crueler than Macabéa has imagined... Chicago Sun-Times 8 of 10
Some of the images in the film - Macabea in her lonely bed, her former lover walking the streets with an absurd stuffed yellow bird, the lover savagely whirling her over his head - have a life of their own. The ending seems to represent the ideas of the director, an ironic commentary on what has gone before. The perfect ending for this film would be a closeup of Macabea alone in bed, staring at the ceiling. - Roger Ebert