The hijacking of Flight 375 proves that Brazil owes nothing to Hollywood

With a gun in his bag and his heart full of resentment, the man from Maranhão Raimundo Nonato Alves da Conceição He got on Vasp flight 375, on September 29, 1988, which had Rio de Janeiro as its destination. About twenty minutes after taking off, the 28-year-old young man, who worked as a tractor driver and had a daughter who was just a few years old, changed the aircraft’s route: the destination was now the Palácio do Planalto, in Brasília, and the plane was supposed to land over the head of José Sarneythen president of Brazil.

The plot of The hijacking of Flight 375, which was shown for the first time at the Rio Festival, held between October 5th and 15th in Rio de Janeiro, seems like fiction, but it isn’t. Much less remembered than September 11th in the United States, the episode was marked in the history of Brazilian aviation and has now been recovered through the work of more than a decade by the researcher Constâncio Viana in a film that is the envy of major Hollywood productions, which hits cinemas from this Thursday, December 7th.

The novelty portrays the moments before, during and after the hijacking of the aircraft, but the focus remains on the event. Jorge Pazin Marighella (2019), is the one who gives life to Nonatowhile Danilo Grangheiafrom the series Brotherhood (2019-), plays commander Murilowho needs to find a way to save all the lives on board from an unexpected situation, which he could never imagine experiencing when finally returning to work after a period of difficulty.

Completing the trio of main characters is the air traffic controller Luziaon the skin of Roberta Gualda (The King of TV), who ends up responsible for negotiating with Nonato so that he changes his mind and gives up on the attack. Despite being an action film – with scenes that will leave the viewer on the edge of their seats and lose their breath -, the involvement between these three characters, very well stitched together by the script Lusa Silvestre It is Mikael de Albuquerquetransform The hijacking of Flight 375 in a much deeper and, especially, human production.

In several moments of interaction between the three, the audience becomes aware of the complexity of the entire situation. The case of Nonato, for example: if he had a choice, he probably wouldn’t do what he did. But he is a desperate family man, unable to help his mother and daughter, who are starving, and with no prospect of improvement, which leads him to commit suicide, with the intention of solving his problem or At least comfort your heart.

So much Murilo how much Luiza recognize this and, in a way, sympathize with the kidnapper, although they are trying, at the same time, to control their despair. Nonato so that everyone comes out of that dramatic situation alive. However, at the end of the film, even if the character’s actions are not excusable, it is difficult to pinpoint who the villain of the story really was, in a general context, which makes for great discussion.

Both narratively and visually, The hijacking of Flight 375 It’s a spectacle. Some more perfectionist viewers may be bothered by the special effects used in the work, but I consider it something so small compared to the importance that this film has when it reaches cinemas across the country.

It’s not every day that we see a production with this level of quality, so well tied together in several aspects, leave Brazilian studios. Therefore, I believe that the moment is to be proud and hope that, in the future, Brazilian audiovisual will be seen with more affection, obtain more investment and, who knows, in some time not so distant, it will replace Hollywood as the standard of quality. The will, as we can now see, exists.