Although some people may not know how it feels, there are times when you can feel unsafe in the country you inhabit. Times when political change and the installation of a dangerous dictator can lead to citizens being taken away without any firm evidence of their crimes. They might reappear one day, but they also might not. This has happened in far too many countries on far too many occasions. One of those countries is America right now in 2025, but one of those countries has also been Brazil, which is the setting for this film.
Starting off back in the 1970s, but exploring the repercussion of a chain of events that started in the previous decade, I'm Still Here shows what happens to a family when a loved one is spirited away by mysterious authority figures. Everyone is put on high alert, of course, and there's a mixture of curiosity and grief pervading the home, but there's also sometimes a real strength revealed in the one person (in this case Eunice Paiva, played mainly by Fernanda Torres) left to hold everything together and maintain some sense of normality in the middle of a sudden and unexpected nightmare.
Based on a memoir by Marcel Rubens Paiva, adapted into screenplay form by Murilo Hauser and Heitor Lorega, this manages to be upsetting and effective without ever seeming to sensationalise anything. One main sequence shows the horror and upset of having your home violated by people looking for a nominated target, but everything else is simply showing a woman trying to do what is best for her family as she also tries to get some answers to one or two very important questions.
Director Walter Salles hasn't made too many mistakes in a directorial career that now spans about four decades, but this may be his best film yet. It's hard to put a finger on why it works so well, perhaps the subtlety of the narrative and the central performance somehow, paradoxically, make it feel like the important central messaging is being delivered through a megaphone. Or maybe it's just how sady relevant it seems right now. Either way, I'm Still Here is a history lesson that needs to be watched by those who we can only hope don't want to see it repeated.
There are great performances from absolutely everyone onscreen, but it's Torres who gets to hold our attention for most of the runtime, and she does it with ease. It's such a great performance that it's hard to remember anyone else as the end credits roll, although I will also be sure to praise Fernanda Montenegro (the older incarnation of Eunice) and Selton Mello (Rubens, the husband who is taken away one night, leading to the void that the characters, and the entire film, then explores in different ways).
Some people can actively fight against injustice while it is happening. Some people dedicate their lives to highlighting and getting reparations for those who have been the victims of such injustice. And some people can do no more than try to survive. That's enough. If you're country has become intolerant to you, or people that you love, and you're scared, vulnerable, and unable to figure out any way to strike back at power-hungry abusers . . . just stating "I'm still here" is often enough to inspire and support others in a similar position. That may not have been the main point of this film, despite the title, but it's definitely something worth remembering.
9/10
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