Introduction

I didn’t, as of yet, stockpile a bunch of new Christmas specials for this year so I am unsure how many of these reviews will be posted, and how many titles will be added to this year’s Holiday Viewing Log (to be posted soon) in addition to the first class.

O Natal de Todos Nós

However, I did see this short special through the year. It’s interesting that this universally loved group of characters in Brazil in essence did one special did kind of what I suggested in this piece. The film goes through short iterations where we see disparate characters, one-by-one, have their own Christmas preparations and they all coalesce in the end and join into one story.

The stories deal with the following characters: Horácio, Jotalhão, Mônica, Cebolinha, Cascão, Magali, Bidu, Franjinha, Chico Bento, Astronauta, etc. and is made up of shorts produced from 1966-1986. It includes a preponderance of voice over, emphasis on montage and stills. Techniques aside there are quite a few interesting thematic touchstones in it such as, mainly, the fact that there are dinosaurs and Jesus, thank you, Brazil! Aside from the co-existence of science and religion in the same special, which would be unheard of here; there is also fantasy and reality side-by-side such as acknowledgment of the true nature of Santa Claus and embracing it nonetheless. There are other aspects touched upon both universal (midnight mass) and culturally specific (trying wine with parental consent), more creative touches (a celestial Christmas tree and the Big Bang) and voice talent up the wazoo.

Perhaps what’s best is, that at least for the time being, I found it on YouTube (Sorry, I did not locate English dubbing or subtitles). Enjoy!