The Rat Herb

Júlio Bressane is a very unusual director. He may live in a different time and in a different world from most people. More than ten years ago (in 1998) the festival dedicated a retrospective to his fascinating work, which is occasionally very difficult to fathom. Bressane has continued ever since on the road he had taken and this latest absurd, pornographic and surrealist film fits in perfectly in his unusual oeuvre.
Bressane tells a story in this film that meshes with two stories by his famous compatriot Machado de Assis: A Causa Secreta and Um Esqueleto. The story A erva do rato (The Rat Herb) is not by Machado de Assis, but it is conceived in his spirit and style.
Rat herb is a poison acquired from plants. The male protagonist (only referred to as He) makes tea from it for the female protagonist (She, indeed). They chanced upon each other in a churchyard. He takes her home with him and doesn't let her go again.
Increasingly under the influence of poison, She notes down his stories in booklets that slowly start to fill the walls. She allows him to take nude photos of her - of details of her (it's probably unnecessary to mention that this is a film for adults). When he finds out that rats are nibbling the photos, he becomes furious. Yes, cinema still has dark secrets. (GjZ)