{"id":5862,"date":"2025-03-02T10:45:26","date_gmt":"2025-03-02T10:45:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/hernet.news\/?p=5862"},"modified":"2025-03-02T10:45:26","modified_gmt":"2025-03-02T10:45:26","slug":"brazils-dark-past-revisited-oscar-nominated-film-im-still-here-sparks-national-reckoning","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hernet.news\/?p=5862","title":{"rendered":"Brazil\u2019s Dark Past Revisited: Oscar-Nominated Film \u2018I\u2019m Still Here\u2019 Sparks National Reckoning"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

On January 8, Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva stood in the heart of the nation\u2019s capital and declared three powerful words: \u201cWe’re still here.\u201d The phrase, borrowed from the critically acclaimed biographical drama I\u2019m Still Here<\/em>, resonated deeply in a country still grappling with the shadows of its past.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The film has not only captivated audiences, grossing over 4.1 million viewers to become one of Brazil\u2019s highest-grossing movies ever, but it has also etched its name in history as the first Brazilian film shot in Portuguese to compete for Best Picture at the 97th Academy Awards. However, its significance extends far beyond its cinematic achievements\u2014I\u2019m Still Here<\/em> is a stark confrontation with Brazil\u2019s violent history under military dictatorship, a chapter that remains largely unresolved.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A History of Silence and Suffering<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Brazil\u2019s military dictatorship, which began in 1964, lasted for more than two decades, bringing with it censorship, arbitrary detentions, and the disappearance of thousands of suspected dissidents. While official reports estimate at least 434 deaths, experts suggest the true number could be as high as 10,000. Yet, Brazil has never prosecuted the military officials responsible, largely due to a sweeping Amnesty Law passed in 1979.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Few monuments or museums exist to memorialize these atrocities, but I\u2019m Still Here<\/em> has broken through the silence. Human rights advocate Ivo Herzog, whose father, journalist Vladimir Herzog, was tortured and killed in 1975, praised the film\u2019s impact.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe main importance of the film is that it was able to break through the bubble,\u201d Herzog said. \u201cIt brought a little of this indignation that we’ve been experiencing for so long to people who haven’t lived this story.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Stories of the Disappeared<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Directed by Walter Salles, I\u2019m Still Here<\/em> is based on the real-life disappearance of former Congressman Rubens Paiva in January 1971. Paiva was taken into military custody and never seen again. His wife, Eunice Paiva\u2014portrayed by acclaimed actress Fernanda Torres\u2014emerges as the film\u2019s heroine, enduring arrest and surveillance while raising five children and demanding answers about her husband’s fate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The film also touches on other victims, including Cilon Cunha Brum, a young activist involved in student protests and the Communist Party\u2019s armed resistance. Brum disappeared in the early 1970s, his family left without closure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For many, the film vividly illustrates the trauma of enforced disappearances. Author Liniane Haag Brum, whose uncle was among those who vanished, described watching I\u2019m Still Here<\/em> as an emotional experience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe film represents what a disappearance is. The pain. The vacuum,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A Modern-Day Coup Attempt and Historical Parallels<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

I\u2019m Still Here<\/em> also resonates in today\u2019s Brazil, as the nation recovers from a contemporary coup attempt. On January 8, 2023, thousands of supporters of former President Jair Bolsonaro stormed Brasilia\u2019s Three Powers Plaza, hoping to incite a military uprising to overturn President Lula\u2019s election. The riot, echoing past authoritarian tactics, underscored how fragile democracy remains in Brazil.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Journalist Lucas Figueiredo believes the lack of accountability for past military abuses has fueled present-day political instability.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cTo this day, the military sees itself as having the right to attempt a coup d’\u00e9tat in the 21st century. This is ample proof that no memory has been built up about those events,\u201d Figueiredo said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bolsonaro, a former army captain who has praised the military dictatorship, dismissed the film when asked by a reporter, saying, \u201cI\u2019m not even going to waste my time.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Shifting Attitudes and Calls for Justice<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Despite past resistance, there are signs of change. Bolsonaro himself is now facing charges related to the 2023 coup attempt, with Brazil\u2019s top prosecutor accusing him and 33 others of plotting to overthrow the government. If convicted, Bolsonaro could face decades in prison.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Meanwhile, Brazil\u2019s Supreme Court has ruled that disappearances from the dictatorship era remain an \u201congoing crime,\u201d potentially opening the door for prosecutions despite the Amnesty Law.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Marcia Carneiro, a history professor at Fluminense Federal University, sees this as a turning point.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThere is a new awareness emerging that those who act against the rule of law can be punished. This is interesting and new in Brazil,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cultural Impact and the Road Ahead<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Despite the political weight of its subject, I\u2019m Still Here<\/em> has resonated with a broad audience, largely due to its focus on family. Instead of being framed purely as a political statement, the film portrays the human cost of authoritarianism through intimate moments of loss and resilience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cEveryone has a family\u2014a mother, a father\u2014and is affected when they see them suffering,\u201d Carneiro explained. \u201cViewers recognize the possibility of something like this happening in their home.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The film\u2019s success has intensified demands for official recognition of past crimes. Although President Lula reinstated a commission on political deaths and disappearances, survivors and their families say it lacks sufficient funding and authority. Herzog, whose father\u2019s death was staged as a suicide by the military, is among those calling for more action.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhat are they waiting for? For everyone connected to that period to die?\u201d he asked. \u201cBrazil has a politics of forgetfulness, and we have evolved very, very little.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, in a small but symbolic step, Brazil recently began issuing corrected death certificates for victims of the dictatorship, acknowledging that their deaths were caused by the state. The move has provided a measure of solace for some families.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As I\u2019m Still Here<\/em> prepares to take the global stage at the Oscars, its impact extends far beyond Hollywood. Whether it wins or not, the film has ignited a long-overdue reckoning in Brazil\u2014one that may finally hold the nation accountable for its darkest chapter.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

On January 8, Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva stood in the heart of the nation\u2019s capital and declared three powerful words: \u201cWe’re still here.\u201d The phrase, borrowed from the critically acclaimed biographical drama I\u2019m Still Here, resonated deeply in a country still grappling with the shadows of its past. The film has not […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":5863,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5862","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-5"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/hernet.news\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5862","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/hernet.news\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/hernet.news\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hernet.news\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hernet.news\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=5862"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/hernet.news\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5862\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5864,"href":"https:\/\/hernet.news\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5862\/revisions\/5864"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hernet.news\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/5863"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/hernet.news\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=5862"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hernet.news\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=5862"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hernet.news\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=5862"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}