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The Middle of the World (2003 film)
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Wikipedia article
'The Middle of the World' (; lit. The Path of the Clouds) is a 2003 Brazilian drama film starring Wagner Moura and Cludia Abreu as a couple with five children making a bicycle trip from the state of Paraba to the city of Rio de Janeiro. It is based on the true story of Ccero Ferreira Dias, a former truck driver who took his family from Pariba to Rio de Janeiro in search of a "R$1,000 job". The English title is a reference to the starting point of the film, the "Praa do Meio do Mundo" (Middle of the World Square in Portuguese).
The film holds a 58% rating at Rotten Tomatoes and a 32 score at Metacritic, indicating "generally unfavorable reviews".
Plot
Romo (Wagner Moura) and Rose (Cludia Abreu) are a poor couple living in Paraba and in search of a job that pays R$1,000 a month, the sum Romo believes to be the minimum necessary for him to feed his children. They decide to make a trip by bicycle to Rio de Janeiro with their five children: teenager Antnio (Ravi Ramos Lacerda); children Rodney (Manoel Sebastio Alves Filho), Clvis (Felipe Newton Silva Rodrigues) and Suelena (Ccera Cristina Almino de Lima); and newborn Ccero (Ccero Wesley A. Ferreira).
Along the way, they make some money washing cars and performing Roberto Carlos songs. They also give a chance to some promising opportunities, but all of them fail. They are first offered a job by a criminal, who warns them that he can only give work for "sons of a bitches". They are later promised jobs by Severino, a councilman of So Bento, but since it takes too long for him to fulfill it, they decide to leave.
Later, they pray by the Statue of Father Ccero in Juazeiro do Norte, where Romo hears an announcement about the "table of Padre Ccero", one that will grant a blessing for the one who manages to lift it. Romo gives it a try, lifts it, but faints just afterwards. Later, they meet a lone traveler called Gideo (Cludio Jaborandy), who tells them to go to Filadlfia and search for Neguia (Fbio Lago). That night, Antnio and Clvis find a church nearby and accidentally smash a cash box full of money. Antnio gives in to temptation and takes all the bills. In Filadlfia, the family meets Neguia, who offers them shelter, but says he has no jobs. Antnio tries to go to the local night party, but flees as soon as he gets there, unable to feel comfortable.
In Feira de Santana, Antnio goes to the local bus terminus and buys tickets to Rio de Janeiro for everyone. When his parents ask where he got the money, Antnio admits it was taken from the church and Romo tears all the tickets apart. Later, the family stumble upon Panam (Sidney Magal) and Callado (Franciolli Luciano), a pair looking for men, women and children from all ages for a "great opportunity", with no skills required. Romo reluctantly agrees and convinces Panam to allow him to take the bikes with them on the truck that'll take them to the opportunity, as well as three members of the family that weren't selected for the job.
The opportunity turns out to be a fake Patax quarup ritual in a club in Porto Seguro, where Romo and three of his children are dressed as supposedly legit Patax and Panam poses as a foreign entertainer, owner of a park called Caminho das Nuvens (the original title of the film; could be translated as "Path of the Clouds"). Antnio sneaks in the club and when Romo sees him, he leaves the place mid-ritual, and so do his children. Frustrated, he orders Rose never to arrange them such jobs anymore.
Still in Porto Seguro, Antnio meets Sereia (Carol Castro), who is giving out some Caminho das Nuvens flyers. Soon after, he meets Neguia and Gideo again, and they take him to a local party, where he meets Sereia one more time and takes an instant picture with her. The morning after, Rose reprehends him for disappearing without any warning and he announces he will stay in Porto Seguro. Romo accepts and leaves with the rest of the family. That night, he searches for Sereia, but she is hooking up with Panam. Antnio spills some beverage on Panam's face, and Sereia responds by pushing him to the ground. Later, he meets his family again by case.
Upon arriving in the state of Rio de Janeiro, Romo arranges Antnio a job as a bricklayer in a city far from Rio de Janeiro. He agrees to stay and says the real last goodbye to his family. As Romo and his family arrive in Rio de Janeiro, they visit the Christ the Redeemer and Romo asks a man for directions to Braslia. Rose listens to it and says she is definitely not going back to the road.
Cast
*Cludia Abreu as Rose
*Wagner Moura as Romo
* Ravi Ramos Lacerda as Antnio
* Sidney Magal as Panam
* Cludio Jaborandy as Gideo / Chupa Cabra
* Franciolli Luciano as Callado
* Manoel Sebastio Alves Filho as Rodney
* Felipe Newton Silva Rodrigues as Clvis
* Ccera Cristina Almino de Lima as Suelena
* Ccero Wallyson A. Ferreira as Ccero
* Ccero Wesley A. Ferreira as Ccero
* Carol Castro as Sereia
* Caco Monteiro as Severino
* Las Corra as Jurema
*Fbio Lago as Neguia
* Lcio Leonn as Criminal
References
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