Alone on Brazil’s Mean Streets
Christian Malheiros captures orphaned gay youth striking out
BY GARY M. KRAMER
The title character (Christian
Malheiros) of out
gay director/ co-writer
Alexandre Moratto’s intimate,
affecting Brazilian drama
“Sócrates” is a gay 15-year-old facing
homelessness. As this intense
fi lm opens, Sócrates’ mother has
died and he is trying to live on his
own, avoiding both foster care and
moving back in with his estranged,
homophobic father, Robson (Jayme
Rodrigues). Sócrates’ despair is
beautifully conveyed by Malheiros,
who offers a touchingly expressive
performance.
Finding a job at a junkyard, Sócrates
gets into a fi ght with Maicon
(Tales Ordakji). However, when
Maicon later invites Sócrates over
to his place, a relationship develops
between them. As Sócrates grapples
with his emotions and experiences
economic hardships, his resilience
is inspiring.
In a recent phone interview,
Moratto spoke with Gay City News
about his powerful fi lm.
GARY M. KRAMER: You dedicate
“Sócrates” to your late mother.
How close is this story to your experiences?
ALEXANDRE MORATTO: My
social context is very different than
Sócrates’, but in terms of the emotions
it is very much what I was
feeling. I was cut off from my family
at the time of my mother’s death,
so I had to deal with it alone. I was
isolated. I needed to get those emotions
out.
KRAMER You made the fi lm
with a crew of 16- to 20 year-olds
as part of a program of social inclusion.
Can you talk about that
process?
MORATTO: In 2009, when I
was 19, I volunteered at the Querô
Institute in Brazil. It was a great
exchange. I told them about my
world, and they showed me theirs.
We talked about making a fi lm
together, so years later, in 2016-
17, I brought the project to them.
I wanted to make it the way we
Christian Malheiros and Tales Ordakji in Alexandre Moratto’s “Sócrates,” which opens August 16 at
Cinema Village.
Tales Ordakji and Christian Malheiros.
worked when I was a volunteer —
the youths are on the set and its
hands-on. They learn by doing.
KRAMER: Much of the fi lm is
shot in close-up and conveys the
grittiness and urgency of Sócrates’
life. Can you discuss your approach
to the fi lm’s intimate style?
MORATTO: I wanted the fi lm to
be a portrait of this young man, so
we should stay on his face the whole
time. I love working with actors,
watching them think and staying
on their faces to see the quiet details
and what’s going on behind
their eyes. Christian Malheiros is a
trained theater actor, so in the early
auditions, he acted very big, but
I’d tell him the camera is so close to
his face everything is magnifi ed — I
can see all your micro-expressions
in your eyes. The cinematographer
kept the camera close to the bodies,
and he moves in a way that reminds
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me of dance. That was a nice way
to work, to synchronize the camera
movement with the actors.
KRAMER: Why make a gay
fi lm?
MORATTO: It’s important to me
because I’m openly gay. So is my cowriter,
Thayná Mantesso, who was
18 when we wrote the script back
in 2016. She’s from the community
where the fi lm was set. It was personal
for us. We don’t see enough
stories about gay people from this
socio-economic background, so for
reasons of representation, I love
that about it, too.
KRAMER: I like how the fi lm
touches on issues queer youth face
— homelessness, sex work, etc.
MORATTO: Those are the core
scenes of the fi lm, but if we take a
step back and not think of the specifi
FILM
cs of his situation, and think
of his emotions, he’s abandoned,
ignored, and marginalized by society.
It’s not that he’s homeless
and contemplates sex work — the
big tragedy is that he doesn’t have
any love, and that’s what he really
needs. He’s rarely hugged except by
the woman who worked with his
mother. It’s about young people who
don’t fi t the status quo. How can we
live in a world where we don’t give
these people, who need support,
love?
KRAMER: What was your intention
in depicting the relationship
that develops between Maicon and
Sócrates?
MORATTO: It is sexual, but it’s
mixed with other feelings, such
as competing at work. That competition
is not uncommon in gay
relationships. My intention with
Maicon was a character Socrates
has a connection with, but he can’t
give him what he needs at that moment.
KRAMER: There are several
episodes of homophobia in the fi lm,
including one at a beach. Can you
talk about homophobia in Brazil?
MORATTO: Machismo and homophobia
are ingrained in Brazilian
culture and it’s always been
that way. I understand that from
my family. My mother was afraid
for my safety when I came out as
gay. “Don’t kiss in public and don’t
touch in public…”
We have the largest Gay Pride
Parade in the world in Brazil. In
many ways, homosexuality is accepted,
but in many ways it is not.
The scene of homophobia at the
beach was Thanyá’s idea. You don’t
go to the beach and kiss under the
docks. That makes it more realistic
and shows how things really are. It
was important was to show it raw
and real. That’s the world Sócrates
lives in.
SÓCRATES | Directed by Alexandre
Moratto | Breaking Glass Pictures |
In Portuguese with English subtitles
| Opens August 16 | Cinema Village,
22 E. 12th St. | cinemavillage.com
GayCityNews.com | August 15 - August 28, 2019 27
/cinemavillage.com
/GayCityNews.com
