Film & TV

Film Review: Three Summers

Over the course of three summers a housekeeper at a luxury condo fights to keep afloat while her boss runs away in the middle of a corruption scandal.

Madá is the housekeeper and caretaker for a luxury condo in Brazil. Over the course of three summers her employer is charged with corruption and disappears, leaving her and her fellow employees to live on their smarts.

Three Summers sees adored Brazilian actor Regina Casé team up once again with director Sandra Kogut who has co-written the screenplay along with Iana Cossoy Paro. With a strong comedic foundation, this film presents the infamously class-divided society of Brazil. Yet one of the most refreshing aspects of this work is that Madá is not portrayed as a pathetic victim. She is strong, sassy, warm, self-interested, kind, funny, and a little bit crazy in the best sense of the word. Casé shows why she has built a reputation as one of Brazil’s best actors, comedians and TV presenters, with an array of emotion and physicality that is almost dizzying. She is very ably supported by a solid ensemble including Gisele Fróes, Alli Willow, Otávio Müller, and Rogério Fróes.

Social and political commentary form the foundation of Three Summers. The victims of Brazil’s corruption and money-laundering scandals are not just the families of the (usually) men, caught up in these webs of deceit: it is also the staff who rely on them for their meagre salaries. But amongst the scandal sits great humour, and some surprising pathos. Left behind at the condo when the rats leave the sinking ship, is Lira, the boss’s elderly father (played by Rogério Fróes). He and Madá share a connection beyond that of employer-employee. And both are victims of Edgar’s greed.

Three Summers has charm galore, but avoids turning into quirky comedic mush. The episodic nature of the narrative jumps from summer to summer, leaving the audience to fill in the gaps. The staff develop various enterprises to keep themselves afloat financially. There is much to keep an audience engaged. Madá is one of those characters that one falls in love with. This film is a tour-de-force for Casé.

Three Summers opens on 24th June

warm, funny, and wise 4 stars

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