Malu

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Malu

2024

1h 43m

Drama

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9 Reviews

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Malu, a 50-year-old unemployed actress living off memories of her glorious past, shares a run-down home in a Rio de Janeiro slum with her conservative mother and has a troubled relationship with her own daughter.

David Ehrlich

IndieWire

It’s only because of this movie’s naked honesty and the unsparing gravity of its supernova lead performance that Freire is able to afford his mother the star vehicle she was never given the chance to act in, nor will ever get the chance to see.

Rated: B+

Apr 9, 2024

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Carlos Aguilar

Variety

Lived in to the point that it becomes difficult to perceive it as a calculated representation and not raw truth, what the superb De Novaes does with this acting feat is at once electric and monstrous.

Jan 28, 2024

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Drew Gregory

Autostraddle

This is a remarkable film — a work of urgency, a work of compassion, a work of love.

Jan 23, 2024

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Amber Wilkinson

Eye for Film

Freire captures not just the emotional but physical force of these relationships, with the women coming to blows, their acts of cruelty to one another as powerful as their acts of love.

Rated: 4/5

Mar 25, 2024

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Louisa Moore

Screen Zealots

There’s a bohemian, free spirited energy to the film that pairs well with the script, and Freire pens some sassy and funny dialogue that’s boosted by excellent performances from the cast.

Mar 6, 2024

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Frank J. Avella

Edge Media Network

Pedro Freire makes an auspicious feature film debut with "Malu," a most stirring and wholly believable depiction of past family trauma and how it manifests generationally...

Rated: A-

Feb 1, 2024

Full Review

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Pedro Freire

Director

Yara de Novaes

Malu

Juliana Carneiro da Cunha

Lili

Carol Duarte

Joana

Átila Bee

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Synopsis

Malu, a 50-year-old unemployed actress living off memories of her glorious past, shares a run-down home in a Rio de Janeiro slum with her conservative mother and has a troubled relationship with her own daughter.

Director: Pedro Freire
Producer: Roberto Berliner, Sabrina García, Tatiana Leite, Leo Ribeiro
Screenwriter: Pedro Freire
Production Co: TVZero, Bubbles Project
Genre: Drama
Original Language: Brazilian Portuguese
Runtime: 1h 43m