Elena
A pained and gorgeous summoning...dances with death, memory, and family, seducing viewers and then breaking their hearts.
Elena
Elena Costa moved to New York in 1989 with dreams of becoming a movie star. She left behind two things she loved: her home in Brazil, and her seven-year-old sister Petra. The letters and calls became less and less frequent, until one day they stopped entirely. Without explanation, Elena was never heard from again. Two decades later, Petra relocates to New York with similar dreams, but also the secret hope of finding the big sister that abandoned her.
Obliterating the line between documentary, diary, and fever dream in the spirit of Tarnation, ELENA is at once captivating and devastating. The film (and the filmmaker) cannot escape the similarities between Petra and Elena’s stories, and as they overlap, they begin to blur. One of the most successful documentaries of all time in Brazil now comes to America, and the truth about what happened to Elena will be revealed.
Obliterating the line between documentary, diary, and fever dream in the spirit of Tarnation, ELENA is at once captivating and devastating. The film (and the filmmaker) cannot escape the similarities between Petra and Elena’s stories, and as they overlap, they begin to blur. One of the most successful documentaries of all time in Brazil now comes to America, and the truth about what happened to Elena will be revealed.
Genre
Documentary,
Bio-pic,
Drama
Runtime
82
Language
Portuguese
Director
Petra Costa
Cast
Petra Costa
FEATURED REVIEW
Stephen Holden, New York Times
The title character of Petra Costa’s poetic, intensely personal documentary essay, “Elena,” is her older sister, a Brazilian dancer and aspiring actress who settled in New York City and eventually committed suicide when Petra was 7. Years later, Petra, also an aspiring actress, followed in Elena’s ...
Played at
Royal 6.13.14 - 6.26.14
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