It seems to be an annual occurrence that after I’ve made my best-of-the-year list, a release from that previous year that I have not seen finally makes its way to theaters locally, and it’s one that absolutely would have made my list. This year, that film is Walter Salles’ remarkable I’m Still Here, a film I received a screening link for months ago but for some reason never got around to. By the time I decided to watch it the night after the Oscar nominations came out, the link had expired. So I took a trip to my local multiplex this afternoon and I’m so glad I finally caught up with this movie. I’m Still Here is one of the most emotionally charged and important films I’ve seen in quite some time.

Open on 1970 Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, at the time under military dictatorship. Eunice Palva (Fernanda Torres) is a wife to architect and former congressman Rubens (Selton Mello) and a mother to five children of varying ages. They live in a beautiful home overlooking the beach and often have lively parties with friends and family visiting. One day, her husband is taken away for ‘questioning’ and later she and her daughter are as well. Nobody tells them what’s going on or where the patriarch of this family is. After they are released, the government denies Rubens’ arrest and disappearance and Eunice is sent on a lifelong journey to find justice for her husband and bring public awareness to the horrific injustices she and her family have endured. 

I’m Still Here is a remarkably relevant and important film and it’s one emotional gut punch after another. I went into it not knowing all that much about what this movie was – imagine my surprise when this story had nothing to do with one of my favorite Stephen Sondheim songs. I really love having the kind of experience where I have no expectations and the film really blows me away. The depiction of this terrible time in Brazil feels like a cautionary tale for the American audience because we’re getting closer and closer to this kind of thing becoming a reality. But the choice to showcase one family and the impact this kind of historical moment can have on the individual rather than the country at large, was a very smart choice. Of course, this is a true story about a real thing that happened to real people, but seeing the impact this kind of government interference can have on everyday people, hit particularly hard at this moment in time.

Fernanda Torres deserves every bit of acclaim and every award she’s won for this film. She is giving a remarkable performance that absolutely deserves to be a part of this year’s Oscar conversation. Her work is restrained, yet explosive. The kind of skill that goes into conveying what this character is feeling seems like an incredibly difficult task. Eunice must put on a brave face for her family while her world is falling apart. She must find ways to let her older children in on the realities of what’s happening while figuring out how to spin the narrative for her younger children who would have a harder time making sense of all of this. Torres does so much with a sideways glance or a quivering lip, and the amount of fine detail in this performance is staggering in its complexity. As an American viewer, I’m unfamiliar with her previous work and now I feel like I have to go back and familiarize myself with her catalog. If she walks away with the trophy on Oscar night, it will have been very well deserved.

Selton Mello as Rubens, the husband, is also very, very good here. He isn’t in a lot of the film but you definitely feel his presence lingering over the whole movie. The young actors playing her children are also phenomenal here. I could list all of them here, but I’ll just say there is no weak link in this cast, which is also an achievement considering this film is first and foremost a showcase for the remarkable work Fernanda Torres is doing. Everybody is on her level and there is such an apparent passion for this important story in every performance. There is also a very sharp attention to detail in the production design of this house, and the way it changes over time. 

I’m Still Here puts the viewer through the emotional wringer, but this story is definitely worth it. This is a story about the atrocities that can happen when government power is unchecked, but it’s also a deeply hopeful story about the power and resilience of the human spirit. This is the most essential kind of filmmaking. It succeeds as a showcase for a remarkable performance, but also is saying something deeply important about the world in which we live. It feels especially relevant in today’s political climate in the United States, and I hope this film is seen by many in America. It’s also just a very effectively told story that could resonate emotionally with just about any viewer. I was moved to tears multiple times and I wasn’t expecting to have this kind of visceral emotional reaction to this film. I’m Still Here is brilliant and devastating, and pretty close to what I would classify as essential viewing.