The Canon / Parallax Editorial Archive
Curated by Pedro Neves, Founder of Parallax
Barren Lives
Vidas Secas
Directed by Nelson Pereira dos Santos
1963•1h 40m•NR•★ 7.4
Drama
Synopsis
In 1940, an impoverished peasant family with two young sons and their loyal dog Baleia wander across the bone-dry, sun-bleached badlands of the Brazilian sertão fleeing catastrophic drought, finding brief shelter as herdsmen on an abandoned ranch until the rains fail again and the landlord's exploitation forces them back onto the scorching desert road. Nelson Pereira dos Santos and Graciliano Ramos' Cannes OCIC Award-winning Cinema Novo foundational monument photographed in blinding, un-filtered natural sunlight.
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Barren Lives
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Cinematic Profile
Nelson Pereira dos Santos
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Cast & Crew
DirectorNelson Pereira dos Santos
WriterNelson Pereira dos Santos
CinematographyJosé Rosa
MusicLeonardo Alencar
Principal Cast
Átila IórioFabiano
Maria RibeiroSinhá Vitória
Jofre SoaresFazendeiro
B
BaleiaGL
Gilvan LimaBoyGL
Genivaldo LimaBoyOM
Orlando MacedoSoldado AmareloAC
Arnaldo ChagasTechnical Specifications
Runtime1h 40m (100 mins)
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Not Yet Collected
Production Details
DirectorNelson Pereira dos Santos
LanguagesPortuguese
CountryBR
StudioSino Filmes • Luiz Carlos Barreto Produções Cinematográficas
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