'Stunning' is not an exaggerated word to describe this film. The images are haunting, and I saw it on the small screen at home. I can only imagine what it must have looked like in a theatre.Director Luiz Fernando Carvalho is masterful in meticulously capturing the poetic word rhythms of novelist Raduan Nassar, who wrote this metaphysical, philosophical work. The largely verbatim prose-poetry (direct from Nasar's book), spoken improvisationally by the actors, is psychologically multi-layered. It is all brilliantly complemented by Walter Cavalho's multi-award-winning cinematography. Cavalho's disturbing and often sumptuous images linger long after the screen has turned dark. One is reminded of Sven Nykvist's haunting style of 'still-life-photography' in films, particularly those made with Ingmar Bergman. Lavoura Carcaica is almost three hours long, and (isn't this always the way with great films?) it requires an almost immediate re-viewing. One just cannot absorb the language and imagery in one sitting. The ensemble acting is first-rate. Sultan Mello is the tortured son in temporary self-imposed exile from his family, who yearns (shamefully) for the love and sensual heat of his sister Ana's body; Simone Spoladore is the innocent, sweet-faced Ana, who expresses her desire for love by dancing (the images are more erotic than 99% of the soft-core sex you see in mainstream movies these days); Juliana Carneiro da Cunha is the loving, long-suffering mother who is an exemplar of maternity, a woman who sacrifices everything to her children, and particularly her 'pet,' Andre (Mello); and Raul Cortez is simply astonishing to watch as the austere, evangelistic, hypocritical father who rages about the primacy of familial love but doesn't really understand its true meaning when it comes to his own children. This is a film that well deserved its many nominations and awards. It is deeply challenging and demanding, and it almost certainly would never have been made in Hollywood.

"Lavoura Arcaica" (aka "To The Left of the Father") is one of the most intense films you'll ever see - love it or hate it, it'll be a real experience for you. Devastating could be the best word to describe this masterpiece, based upon Raduan Nassar's brief, but strong novel of the same name. I've wanted to see this film since when it came out, back in 2001 - I read the novel the following year, when I was 14, and was thoroughly fascinated; the film would only be released on DVD in late 2005, and only now I could find a copy and finally watch it. It was worth the wait.Luiz Fernando Carvalho, who had directed lots of soap operas before making his stunning feature directorial debut, didn't have a screenplay - everything was improvised on the novel, in a process Carvalho called a "reaction", rather than an adaptation, to the exquisite book. The tragic story of André (Selton Mello, perhaps the most versatile Brazilian actor of his generation) who leaves his home because of his tormented passion for his sister Ana (Simone Spoladore), is told with astounding visual taste by Luiz Fernando and cinematographer Walter Carvalho ("Central Station"), a remarkable original score by Marco Antônio Guimarães, and a flawless cast (including sacred monster Raul Cortez and Juliana Carneiro da Cunha as the parents). This is definitely not a film for all tastes, though; 170 minutes long, slow and spoken in Baroque Portuguese (I'm not sure English subtitles can make full justice to Nassar's poetic narrative; but then again, if you don't avoid Wong Kar-Wai's films just because you don't speak Chinese - I certainly don't - you'll be smart enough not to ignore this film). I'd compare "Lavoura Arcaica" to Terrence Malick and Pier Paolo Pasolini, but Luiz Fernando Carvalho managed to make a unique film with his own style. Well deserved winner of over 30 international awards, this is a film that must be discovered. 10/10 in my books.

The narrative is slow, but its lyricism and depth justifies that completely. Direction, acting, art direction, set design and photography are superb, impeccable. The original text, transposed almost literally, is beautiful and philosophically meaningful. The movie make us dive into a dense atmosphere of deep and complex emotions, nothing is superficial. Images and sounds fusions in a whirlpool that really touches the spirit, revolving the soul in a dramatic way. The music, mixing elements from Brasil and Lebanon, is marvelous and perfectly harmonic with the whole work. This is not a movie for Oscar prizes or something like that, but the quintessence of the art cinema, and the best movie i have ever seen.

The first time I saw this film I didn´t like it very much, thought it was too "literary". The second time I saw it again I thought it was OK. At the third time (and last, until the moment) I am almost considering it a masterpiece. You literally dive in the soul of this film, its unique cinematography, the music go deep under your skin. It´s not a film for everyone, almost everyone thought it was boring, or you hate it or love it.Can´t wait to see this film released in DVD!