My friend, who is studying film and animation, recommended me this Brazillian movie, Casa de Areia, when we were talking about happiness. This film is a slow-starter but patient viewers will be rewarded with something quite magical and probably memorable. This is a stunning film, visually and emotionally. Although rooted in a forsaken sandy wasteland, the film is a metaphor for how circumstance locates us and how we can or cannot get out of the place in which we find ourselves. It is a masterpiece of film-making from Brazil.

I loved this movie because it is fully of truthful contrasts. The larger story portrays the passing of time and immense global changes through war, scientific and technological advances. Everything changes, yet stays the same. Regardless of the generation, youth longs for excitement and change, while time brings calmness and acceptance of circumstance. The most amazing part is all is that the passing of time is portrayed from within an oasis in the middle of sand dunes where the sands of time pass slowly yet surely. This contrast, and the circumstances that bring the characters there, leave the audience wondering which they would choose, the simple, calm, and relaxed life of the sand, or the stressful, competitive, yet object filled life in the city.

It’s important to stay sharp to catch the change in generations because the actresses remain the same throughout, but this only adds to the story’s message once you figure it out. I gave it a 7.5 out of 10.