Aquarius

Sônia Braga was known as the Brazilian bombshell when she exploded on to the international film scene opposite William Hurt in 1985’s Kiss of the Spider Woman.

She took the opportunity to move to Hollywood and begin a career in American movies, directed by Robert Redford in The Milagro Beanfield War, and with Richard Dreyfuss in Paul Mazursky’s romcom moon Over Parador. However, her beauty always overshadowed her acting skills, as perhaps did her very public relationships with, among others, redford, Clint Eastwood and rock singer David Lee Roth.

In a way, the Brazilian film Aquarius marks an astonishing comeback for Braga, and she seizes the part of Clara with relish, giving probably the best performance of her career and one of the best of the year. She was hotly tipped for an Oscar nomination, only for Brazilian politicians to lobby hard against the film, which they saw as a subversive piece of propaganda.

Braga’s Clara is a retired music critic and a bit of a local celebrity in the seaside city of Recife. She lives in the Aquarius apartment block, which has a stylish but faded deco grandeur and a wonderful location overlooking the sea, where Clara still goes swimming every morning.

Local developers want to knock down the Aquarius and replace it with shiny new luxury flats. Everyone else has sold up but Clara refuses to budge. This flat is full of memories – and her vinyl collection – and she will not be easily swayed, even by her grown-up children, who stand to gain from the sale.

Clara is a defiant, smart, sexy woman. When the developers resort to intimidation, she ratchets up her determination to stay put. The property men fill the vacant flats with loud rave parties, even orgies and porn shoots. Far from being scared, Clara is somewhat turned on and has her own sexual experience, with a male escort.

How brilliant to see an actress of a certain age given free rein to be so alluring, so vital and sexual. How inspiring to see her dance to her music – on a record player – and flirt with the lifeguards, and how thrilling to see her experience and past being respected in an interview with a young reporter who is as in awe of all those LPs as I am. 

Clara may be haughty with her maid and impatient with her children, but as a flashback shows us, she is a survivor imbued with the spirit of her beloved Aunt Lucia, who had the apartment before her.

The film becomes a metaphor for a generational clash, for respect and memories. Director Kleber Mendonça Filho subtly captures an area and an era, taking us into the many layers of Brazilian society, while Braga gets right under the skin of Clara, inhabiting her like Clara does her apartment.

It’s a gorgeous, sensual film but also a potent social satire, cooled by sea breezes and swaying Brazilian tunes from Gilberto Gil, Heitor Villa-Lobos, and Maria Bethânia. Many Brazilians read into the film, and Clara’s character, parallels with former president Dilma Rousseff, the first woman to hold the post. She was impeached on corruption charges and ousted in what many saw as a coup d’état in 2016, as aquarius was premiering at Cannes. Braga stood up fiercely for Rousseff, a move that harmed her chances of award glory; the film was not put forward as Brazil’s official Oscar entry.

None of that, however, can detract from both the quality of the film and Sônia Braga’s imperious, charismatic grande dame performance. It should be seen by everyone who still has fires burning within and a bit of music in their soul.