Central Station
(Central do Brasil)

Release date 16th January 1998
Country : Brazil/France
Running time : 113 mins
Genre : Drama
Starring Fernanda Montenegro, Vinicius de Oliveira
Screenplay by Marcos Bernstein, Joao Emanuel Carniero
Directed by Walter Salles

Dora, a dour old woman makes a living writing letters for illiterate customers at Rio de Janeiro's Central Station, she has nothing but contempt for these people and never mails their letters. She discovers her heart when she meets Josue, a 9 year old boy whose mother is killed in a car accident, saving him from being killed for his organs she accompanies him on a trip to find his father. It becomes an emotional journey for both of them.

Ingratiating movie from Brazil with superb cinematography which reveals the beauty and some of the poverty of the country. The story is a road movie with a difference with two excellent central performances which see both characters grow as they discover each other, unusual in movies to depict a developing relationship with such sincerity and believability.
 

Very unusual for a modern film this was shot in sequence adding extra reality to the events.