Hard Paint

Hard Paint (Portuguese: Tinta bruta) is a 2018 Brazilian drama film directed by Marcio Reolon and Filipe Matzembacher. It is set in Porto Alegre and follows a young gay man called Pedro (Shico Menegat) who performs on video chat using body paint as his trademark. The film was screened at the 68th Berlin International Film Festival, winning the Teddy Award for the best LGBTQ feature film of the festival.

Directors Filipe Matzembacher (left) and Marcio Reolon (right)

Hard Paint
Film poster
Directed byMarcio Reolon
Filipe Matzembacher
Produced byJéssica Luz
Filipe Matzembacher
Marcio Reolon
Written byMarcio Reolon
Filipe Matzembacher
StarringShico Menegat
CinematographyGlauco Firpo
Release date
  • 18 February 2018 (2018-02-18) (Berlin)
Running time
118 minutes
CountryBrazil
LanguagePortuguese

Plot

The film centres on Pedro (Shico Menegat), a shy young man who works as a performer on a gay-oriented video chat website. His trademark is to dance while smearing neon body paint over his body; the film's central conflict is set in motion when he learns that another chatroom performer (Boy25) is imitating him.

Pedro arranges to meet Boy25 (Leo played by Bruno Fernandes) and they become lovers, but it is hard for Pedro to trust anyone. He has previously been pushed to breaking point by bullies and whilst his sister knows him well, he has to lie to his grandmother about how he makes money. His mother is dead and his father is not around. Pedro leads a double life in which he is introverted until he goes online and assumes his alternative identity NeonBoy. A real-life sexual encounter goes wrong but then despite losing Leo (who is following his dreams and moving to Europe), at the end of the film Pedro is dancing and open to new beginnings.

Cast
  • Shico Menegat as Pedro
  • Bruno Fernandes as Leo
  • Guega Peixoto as Luiza (Pedro's sister)
  • Sandra Dani as Avó (Pedro's grandmother)
  • Frederico Vasques as Beto

Themes

Hard Paint explores the theme of isolation, since Pedro performs online from a studio in his bedroom and withdraws from the wider world. He has difficult relationships with his family and the other people he meets. This depiction of Pedro then creates a picture of a fragmented world in which people are alienated from each other.[1] This feeling of loneliness can also be applied to the city of Porto Alegre, from which many young people move away (like Pedro's sister) leaving the people who remain with only memories.[2]

Critical response

Internationally, Hard Paint was a critical success. Variety praised the "picture of a fragmented society barely able to foster empathetic connections".[1] Sight & Sound suggested the film was a "potential LGBTQ breakout hit" and whilst cautioning that it was a looser film than other recent crossover successes such as God’s Own Country and A Fantastic Woman, called it "entertainingly unpredictable".[3] Screen Daily enjoyed the "fluid cinematography" of Glauco Firpo saying it caught "the quasi-fairytale quality of a boy who lives on the outside of his life, looking in".[4]

Mature Times called the film a "poignant character study".[5] The Hollywood Reporter remarked that Hard Paint "at times recalls Moonlight, not just structurally, in its separately titled three-part breakdown, but also in its moving observation of a vulnerable gay male protagonist in an unaccommodating environment".[6] Australian Cinematographer, the magazine of the Australian Cinematographers Society, called the film "stunning" and "beautiful".[2]

Accolades
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References
  1. Weissberg, Jay (28 February 2018). "Film Review: 'Hard Paint'". Variety. Retrieved 7 April 2020.
  2. Cunningham, James (1 June 2018). "Film Review: Hard Paint". Australian Cinematographer Magazine. Retrieved 7 April 2020.
  3. O'Callaghan, Paul (14 April 2018). "Hard Paint first-look review: dark days and neon nights on Porto Alegre's wild side". Sight & Sound. British Film Institute. Retrieved 7 April 2020.
  4. Ide, Wendy (26 March 2018). "'Hard Paint': BFI Flare Review". Screen Daily. Retrieved 7 April 2020.
  5. Glasser, Joyce (1 August 2019). "Despite the unsavoury subject matter, we care about the protagonist in this poignant character study". Mature Times. Retrieved 7 April 2020.
  6. Rooney, David (20 February 2018). "'Hard Paint' ('Tinta bruta'): Film Review | Berlin 2018". The Hollywood Reporter. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved 23 August 2018.
  7. Press Office (25 January 2018). "Programme for Berlinale Panorama 2018 Complete: What's Your Poison?". Annual Archives: 2018. Berlin International Film Festival. Retrieved 29 January 2018.
  8. Roxborough, Scott (23 February 2018). "Berlin: 'Hard Paint' Wins Teddy Award for Best LGBTQ Feature". The Hollywood Reporter. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved 23 August 2018.
  9. "Art Cinema Awards 2018: all the winners". CICAE. Retrieved 7 April 2020.
  10. "Hard Paint". m-appeal.com. Retrieved 7 April 2020.
  11. "HARD PAINT wins at Outfest 2018". m-appeal.com. Retrieved 7 April 2020.
  12. "54th Chicago International Film Festival Award Winners". Cinema Chicago. Retrieved 7 April 2020.
  13. "Molodist KIFF has announced the winners of Sunny Bunny competition program! | Molodist Kyiv International Film Festival". Кінофестиваль Молодість Україна. 2 June 2018. Retrieved 7 April 2020.
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