Pre-Paid Love : Cinderelas, Lobos e Um Principe Encantado

Poster of Joel Zito Araújo's newest documentary

Yesterday I've been at Cine Odeon to watch the first national screening of Joel Zito Araújo's newest documentary "Cinderelas, Lobos e Um Principe Encantado" ("Cinderellas, Wolves, and One Prince Charmed") at Festival do Rio, whose theme is the huge and scary Brazilian sex industry, which also involves pedophilia and traffic of human beings. Joel Zito Araújo is nowadays one of the greatest Brazilian directors and also an amazing thinker. Professor at the Universidade de São Paulo his works aways have got a social and politic glance to controversial subjects, specially those related to racism and poverty. This time hasn't been different. "Cinderelas" is a kind of film which should be watched without prejudice and at same time with distancing. By talking about sex tourism and its exploration such in Brazil (Northeastern cities like Salvador and Recife, two of the biggest nerve centres of sex tourism in Brazil) and as well in Europe (Rome and Berlin), Joel Zito got to get sincere, sad, tragic and funny testimonials such of some lost low class European tourists serching for the perfect "bitch", as well of poor young Brazilian girls trying to find some immediate solution for their own (financial/moral) whole life misery, among others. But he's been crossing borders as well; right there, where some got to get beyond the sunny sex market of Brazilian Northeastern beaches. In Berlin he talked to some "characters" like: couples whom met at such circumstances, a young and pretty lady from Bahia totally disappointed with the lack of "sexual interest" of her husband and a German guy who claims to be a "big fan" of Brazilian women, and whose big apartment is fulfilled with young and "sexy" Brazilian ladies he calls as "friends". "Cinderela" is a very interesting study about sexuality, poverty, degradation, illusions and make us wonder, in many ways, about the difference between interest and necessity. It is also about the (still) very post-colonial view of latin women as a sexual object, who suppost to be aways sexually available in a very cheap way. This very stereotiped view embodies the stigma of the "civilized" and the "savage". Joel Zito's documentary shows us that those roles - "civilized" and "savage" - are in many situations completely and wrongly reversed.

Rio de Janeiro International Filmfestival
"Cinderelas, Lobos & Um Principe Encantado"
Last Screening
Thusday, 30th September
Estação Vivo Gávea (Shopping da Gávea)
1:30 PM - 10:30 PM