Amei um Bicheiro

Intent on offering his fiancée a better life, countryman heads for Rio de Janeiro in search of a place in the sun. With no contacts in the big city, he gets involved with the crime underworld connected with illegal betting. This was the first Brazilian film to deal candidly with "Jogo do Bicho", the popular and illegal daily lottery in Rio de Janeiro. "Amei um bicheiro" is an average film noir far away from the best of the genre. For Brazilians and for those who are interested in the Brazilian cinema it is worth to check out, because "Amei um bicheiro" is (for Brazilian standards anyway) a well-made film (it was heavily influenced by the American film noir and it even took some hints from the Italian neorealism) featuring well-known and loved Brazilian actors - Grande Otelo, José Lewgoy, Wilson Grey, Jece Valadao, Cyl Farney, Eliana etc.. This film has sentimental value for us Brazilians. It shows a Rio de Janeiro gone forever, but the story of the film is naive and melodramatic and the acting is just average. The scenes of physical violence are embarrassingly unconvincing. The film noir clichés are used efficiently to portray the world of the "jogo do bicho" (animals' game), a kind of illegal gambling business, but the story and the characters lack depth. "Amei um bicheiro" is good if you take it as it is - a film that is simple and sometimes even moving in its naivety. There were surely better Brazilian films at the time ("O Cangaceiro" for instance, and two years later "Rio 40 graus" would start a new wave in the Brazilian cinema). Recommended for those who study and love the Brazilian cinema.