True Believer (1989)

A lawyer with a background as a civil rights militant now specializes in drug cases; he hires a young assistant who persuades him to take the case of an unjustly imprisoned Korean immigrant.

The main character exemplifies Millôr Fernandes's adage: "Never trust an idealist who profits from his ideal". He eventually comes to terms with his conscience, with the unexpected bonus of discovering that the case he took was not really a departure from his specialization (civil rights violations as a result of drug repression). Criminal drama with a liberal slant, done with a modicum of intelligence and very professionally.

Rating: 51

Gabbeh (1996)

Set in rural Iran, this is about a young woman who encounters successive obstacles to her marriage with a man she fancies.

This could perhaps have been a better film if more resources were applied to its production. The actors here clearly cannot act, most of them anyway, and the script has a somewhat disjointed structure, with poorly written dialogue. But there are some good ideas and the premise has some potential; its main asset is the lovely display of color mainly on women's clothes.

Rating: 48

The Punisher (1989)

A vigilante had been wiping out several members of the mafia, but now the police believe him to be dead. When the head of that criminal organization returns to the U.S.A., there is speculation over the biological status and possible new actions by the aforementioned independent executioner. A headstrong policeman has his own ideas about the vigilante's identity, and has pursued a solitary investigation to find and apprehend him.

Mildly rewarding as a testosterone-fueled thriller, yet severely lacking in the dramatic department-- the subplot about the motivations of the cop for chasing the Punisher is borderline retarded. What is most problematic about this film, and also with the Batman films, is that they are based on a concept -- that of individual vigilantism -- which is, to the best of my knowledge, absent from reality.

Rating: 33

O Despertar da Besta (1969)

Alternate title: O Ritual dos Sádicos.

English title: Awakening of the Beast.

One or more gangs are kidnapping young women and administering drugs to them in order to make them perform sex acts for perverted men. Concurrently, an assembly of intellectuals debate the effects of drugs.

A blend of Reefer Madness and Corman's The Trip, this fits neatly in the exploitation category, wherein a theme is exploited for its shock appeal rather than being legitimately explored into its causes and consequences. Well, anyway, it was voted one of the best 100 Brazilian films, go figure. And, God knows, it might actually be, Brazilian films being so bad in their majority... This film marks a contrast with the earlier work of its diretor. The taste for shocking imagery is still present, and here there is the extra bonus of some impressive color cinematography in the hallucination sequences, but the raw power of those earlier works, which, perhaps unwittingly, dissected the very core of Brazilian machismo ideology, is gone, and the Coffin Joe character is replaced by its maker-as-character, now a celebrity of sorts.

Rating: 31

One Crazy Summer (1986)

Two high-school graduates go on a summer trip to an American island town, where they meet some weird friends of one of them. They also meet a teenage rock singer on the run from her former employers. One of the visiting boys feels attracted towards her, and tries to help her over troubles she's having with her father's mortgage.

Amiably wacky comedy, which is funnier on its first half and then gets somewhat draggy, though not as much as to become unpleasant.

Rating: 55