This beat The 400 Blows, Room at the Top, and Hiroshima Mon Amour. Hard to believe.
shareAgreed. I finally watched it for the first time and was not overly impressed. Very overrated and very dated. Pales alongside other '59 releases like "400 Blows" "Wild Strawberries" and "The World of Apu"
shareHaving not yet seen the other films, I certainly hope you are correct. This film is an awful bore. I gave it a 6/10.
shareIt's a beautiful and passionate film, what's not to get? Perhaps you should relax your cynicism to appreciate film-making that's so vibrant and alive?
shareJust because one doesn't think it deserved the award doesn't mean the person is cynical. Grow up.
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After seeing this, I must agree with the OP: Nowhere near the other movies mentioned in this thread; the Orpheus myth did not translate well here at all, compared to Cocteau.
Only two things are infinite, the universe and human stupidity, and I'm not sure about the former.
It most likely beat out those other (great) films simply because of how utterly unique it is. Beautiful Brazil, beautiful and exotic people filmed in stunning color against the exotic backdrop. and Orpheus has it all; romance, comedy, mystery, and a definite eroticism. 400 Blows is a wonderful film, but it is not as alive and as joyful as Orpheus. Hiroshima mon Amour is a formidable work, but it is dark, murky and very sad. I just think that in a year of serious black & white, a film like "Black Orpheus' simply caught alot of peoples atention. It is an absolute classic, as are the other films you mention
shareYes it had all those elements but combined very poorly. Not to mention the music keeps on going on and on; I mean I don't mind the samba, but editing should have shortened those scenes.
Frankly all the other films had much better directing and as a result much better execution than Black Orpheus. Like City of God, the nouveau element goes away and we are left with a mediocre film.
Only two things are infinite, the universe and human stupidity, and I'm not sure about the former.
"City of God" is not a 'mediocre film,' and either is "Black Orpheus." I'm sorry that YOU didn't care for these films...fortunately, countless others did, which is why today, they are remembered, and considered classics. There must be a reason for that, don't you think?
shareBlack Orpheus has less than 4000 votes, compared to the other movies on this list, these "countless others" are pretty limited to movie connoisseurs. Frankly popularity is a bad reason to qualify something as subjective as film.
Only two things are infinite, the universe and human stupidity, and I'm not sure about the former.
Ah, how sad that you cannot appreciate this fever dream of a movie. It certainly is NOT an intellectual exercise, and if that is what you are looking for, I can see why you did not enjoy it. If anything, it is the opposite of intellectual. This movie is strictly a sensual experience, driven by the drums and the samba music that it made famous. The classical story of Orpheus and Eurydice is translated to the slums of Rio de Janeiro during Carnaval, and plays out amidst the excesses of the celebration, during the few days for which many in the favelas of Rio live out the rest of the year preparing for.
I saw this movie as a child and have remembered it ever since, and was so happy to find it again a few years ago...it has stood the test of time for me.
I've seen two of the three movies you favor over this, and I have to say that while they were intellectually stimulating, Black Orpheus resonates for me at a completely different level.
Lethe
I saw this movie twice -- as a college student in the early 1970's and then again about 15 years ago -- and it's easy to remember its timeless beauty. Though I strongly appreciate a few of the other films mentioned above, this one touched my heart most deeply. Also, the way it is set upon the ancient Greek myth is an embodiment of intelligent film making.
BTW, as they are both important and excellent films set in Brazil, City of God struck me as a logical and eye-opening follow-up to Black Orpheus: the time of its story begins soon after Black Orpheus' time, and its story is the polar opposite of the romanticism of Rio the earlier film beautifully displays. An awesome two-some, IMO.
Oh that magic feeling -- nowhere to go.