A painless enough movie, which is precisely the problem
Comment
08/27/09
The Year My Parents Went On Vacation (2008)
83
%
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:52
Fresh:43
Rotten:9
Average Rating:7.1/10
Consensus: Hamburger deftly refracts the sociopolitical tumult of early '70s Brazil through the lens of a young boy's coming of age, and Joelsas' performance is wise beyond his years.
Runtime: 1 hr 44 mins
Genre: Foreign Films
US Box Office: $0
Synopsis: This Brazilian import is set during the excitement of the 1970 World Cup. While the country focuses its attention on the epic soccer tournament, a boy is separated from his parents as they are... [More]
Starring: Michel Joelsas, Germano Haiut, Caio Blat, Daniela Piepszyk
Director: Cao Hamburger
Reviews for The Year My Parents Went On Vacation
Heavy on nostalgic charm, but a lovely and insightful portrait of children buffeted by their parents' leftist activism in the 1970's and of São Paolo's Jewish neighborhood.
12/17/08
click for full review
11/08/08
You've heard this story before, but what makes The Year My Parents Went on Vacation worth seeing is the unfamiliar setting...the Jewish community of Sao Paolo.
09/19/08
a skillful combination of humor, sadness, and tension
07/25/08
The Year My Parents Went on Vacation is an appealing dramedy that delicately couches its political and social commentary in a coming of age tale.
07/09/08
Steps into the shoes of youth remembered, a summer when a boy's wide eyes are opened further by disillusion--the final whistle sounds sharp and harsh, echoing long after the game's over. An elegant, reflective film that dekes around coming-of-age cliches.
07/01/08
... a sharply drawn coming-of-age comedy-drama...
05/15/08
Joelsas' youthful exuberance carries the movie long enough to make this "Vacation" a rewarding trip.
05/02/08
The comforting familiarity, even in a foreign country in a time of political strife, is what makes it quietly effective.
05/01/08
Despite a few bits of low-key humor and some cheeky bits, the mostly charming film is actually meant to be taken seriously. And there are some poignant, surprisingly tender moments.
05/01/08
Director and co-writer Cao Hamburger presents all of this in such a timid and sanitized manner that one would suspect childhood wasn't a messy affair. Unfortunately for Hamburger, we've all been there, done that.
04/30/08
Their performances (Michel Joelsas, Daniela Piepszyk) %u2014 natural, poignant and wide-eyed about what life will serve up %u2014 are things of beauty.
04/25/08
A Brazilian dramedy that touches on politics, sex, family and religion but is interested in them only to the extent that they rub off on the movie's people.
04/18/08
An utterly convincing depiction of childhood loneliness and uncertainty, in a world I'd never seen onscreen: the Orthodox Jewish community of Sao Paulo.
04/18/08
Director Cao Hamburger has a warm, delicate sensibility that informs the story's commonplace events. Neither the story's drama nor its comedy are overstated.
04/17/08
Heartwarming...This is a Year worth spending with Mauro and his friends.
04/12/08
The most original parts of The Year My Parents Went on Vacation vividly juxtapose melting-pot conviviality with political turmoil in 1970 Brazil.
04/11/08
Most political films involving children are vicious or sentimental. The Year My Parents Went on Vacation, set in 1970 when Brazil was under the military dictatorship of General Emilio Medici, is neither.
04/11/08
This Brazilian coming-of-age drama, co-produced by City of God creator Fernando Meirelles, charms because it rarely spells things out.
04/11/08
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