Featured DVD Review: Carmo, Hit the Road

May 5, 2011

Carmo, Hit the Road - Buy from Amazon

Carmo, Hit the Road hit theaters last fall, but was unable to find an audience. It was writer / director Murilo Pasta's first film, so he didn't have a built-in audience to help sell ticket. Nor were the reviews particularly good. Was the film as bad as its Tomatometer / box office would indicate? Or was it unfairly treated?

The Movie

Maria do Carmo is trying to get out of town, fast. She's not concerned about where she ends up, as long as it's not where she's already been. Trouble is, she doesn't have enough money to get very far. Marco is a smuggler traveling a dangerous route. It's even more dangerous for him than for most people, as he's confined to a wheelchair. We do see that he's able to take care of himself early in the movie, when he protects Carmo from a potential rapist. Carmo wants to join him on the road, but he's less than interested. They do bump into each again and eventually agree to team up after Marco is robbed by two bandits, who happen to be working for the same crime boss he is. The pair then have work togeter while traveling the dangerous roads and eventually they fall in love, despite getting on each others nerves throughout the movie.

No, that's not really a spoiler, as it's pretty obvious early on that is going to be the end result of this movie. It's a road trip movie where the two people hate each other and you know in the end those passionate feelings will eventually turn to romance. But just because a film is on the predictable side of things, doesn't mean it's a bad movie, as long as the rest works. Unfortunately, the execution is a little mixed. The general look of the movie is excellent with excellent cinematography and there are nice visual flairs from time to time, while some of the side characters are entertaining in an over-the-top way. Also, the performances by the two leads are strong, but that takes us to one of the weaknesses in the movie.

The two lead characters are not really compelling. They are supposed to grate on each others' nerves until the inevitable romance begins. The problem is they also grate on the audience's nerves. Additionally, the parts of the movie that can be over-the-top in a fun way, including the visuals and a lot of the side characters, can also be over-the-top in a distracting way.

The Extras

There are some images and bios, but that's as close as we get to real extras.

The Verdict

Overall, Carmo, Hit the Road is not exactly a satisfying experience, but enough of it works that fans of the genre will want to check it out. But with almost no extras on the DVD, a rental will be enough. Meanwhile, I'm hoping Murilo Pasta's next film is enough of an improvment that it can be recommended more enthusiasticly.


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Filed under: Video Review, Carmo