Este filme gostaria que você soubesse que é importante – uma crítica sobre frango
By April Klein
Have you ever heard of the term “Social Problem Film”? Não é um termo particularmente bem formulado, mas descreve um tipo de filme concebido desde o seu início para abordar uma questão social mais ampla através das lentes de uma estrutura narrativa tradicional.. Durante a Era de Ouro de Hollywood, o termo era mais adequado, já que os estúdios literalmente encomendavam filmes para cobrir questões que eles acreditavam que atrairiam o público. These films would address topics such as racism, abuso de drogas, or immigration, just as much as they would fit into the horror or drama genres. Politics replaced genre.
The same ideals exist today but on a more individualized scale. Levar The Hate U Give, Hillbilly Elegy, ou Beautiful Boy—all issue-based films, but now more often based on memoirs or popular books inspired by real events. While the origins of these projects have shifted (from mass-produced studio flicks to studios adapting best-sellers with a topical hook), the appeal remains the same.
Directed by Josh Leong, Frango is a prime example of what makes a social problem film both admirable and somewhat drab. Beautifully shot and well-acted, Leong’s script ultimately lets down the otherwise talented work by feeling flat. These characters are hardly people—more like vessels for themes to flow through—but the film isn’t stylized enough for that choice to resonate. Shallow focus and dim lighting tell us this story is meant to be taken seriously, but in making that choice, the humanity the film wants to evoke feels distant. It’s posturing—in support of a good cause, certainly—but the result is mostly forgettable.
I would give this film a 3 de 5.
April Klein is a rising junior at DePaul University, working towards a BFA in Film & Television Production. She also writes and edits for her university’s newspaper The DePaulia and works as an independent filmmaker. She can usually be found watching whatever peaks her interest on the Criterion Channel this month.
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