THE YEAR THAT MY PARENTS WERE ON VACATION Brasil, Cao Hamburger, 2006

Director: Cao Hamburger Length: 104 minutes Country: Brazil Original Title: O Ano em que Meus Pais Saíram de Ferias Producer: Cão Hamburger Language: Portuguese and Yiddish Cast: Michel Joelsas ... Mauro Color: Color Germano Haiut ... Shlomo Sound: Dolby Paulo Autran ... Mótel, Mauro's grandfather Script: Adriana Falcão, Claudio Galperin, Cao Hamburger, Bráulio Simone Spoladore ... Miriam, Mauro's mother Mantovani, Anna Muylaert Eduardo Moreira ... Daniel, Mauro's father Photography: Adriano Goldman Caio Blat ... Ítalo Editing: Daniel Rezende Daniela Piepszyk ... Hanna Music: Beto Villares Liliana Castro ... Irene Rodrigo dos Santos ... Edgar

Questions of analysis:

1. What is this movie about? 2. Whose story is it? 3. How does the opening scene sets the tone for the rest of the story? 4. Whose point of view is the film told from? 5. Is there a voice-over narrator? What kind of rapport does the narrator establish with us? 6. What is the historical referent? 7. Can we label The Year my Parents Went on Vacation as a Jewish film? 8. How does the film define Jewish identity? 9. Does the film present examples of cultural assimilation and/or cultural adaptation? Expand your answer. 10. Does the film subvert, revise question or validate traditional values? Defend your answer. 11. Is the director primarily a leftist, centrist, or rightist? 12. What role does soccer play in the film? 13. What role—if any—does religion play? Are there any ethnic values present? 14. Are there any ethnic values present?

THE YEAR THAT MY PARENTS WERE ON VACATION. Brasil, Cao Hamburger, 2006. This handout by Manuel Medina is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported License. 15. What is the coherent message? Or Why the director made the film? 16. What cultural values, such as nationalism, are embodied in the film? 17. How does the film close the story? Would you change it? Does it provide closure to the audience?

THE YEAR THAT MY PARENTS WERE ON VACATION. Brasil, Cao Hamburger, 2006. This handout by Manuel Medina is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported License.