Joao Cesar Monteiro's The Last Dive opens with Samuel, a young man, who is about to jump into the waters of the Tagus, presumably intent on ending his life. Before he can do so, Mr. Eloi, an old retired sailor approaches him. Mr. Eloi seems to share the same intentions as his younger counterpart, but after the two talk for a bit, he convinces Samuel to join him for a night or two on the town. Joao Cesar Monteiro's The Last Dive is strange tale of life and death that's true intentions remain a tad elusive. The story is straightforward enough, as we follow two men over the course of a series of two nights, as they frequent nightclubs and mingle with prostitutes, but the key interpreting the Last Dive is centered around Samuel's relationship with Esperanca, a simple, young prostitute who happens to be Eloi's daughter. While The Last Dive is a film that is rich and dense with ideas and discussions, the film's most powerful aspect is centered around love vs. lust and the power of the male gaze in society. Monteiro captures the destructive power of the male gaze and how it dictates much of society, showing in Mr. Eloi a man who has seen his life and livelihood effectively shattered by his lust for the female form. It is subtle, but Monteiro paints a portrait of a man who has let his lustful ways drive his life, which has led him to having a wife that despises. Conversely is Sam, a man who is headed down a similar path but by the end of the film he is able to transcend his male gaze driven lust and find love and companionship with Esperanca, who essentially saves the young man from his fate with the waters of the Tagus. There is a large dance sequence in the middle of the film that further hints at these themes, which finds Mr. Eloi and Samuel watching the play Salome, entranced by the female dancer in front of them. Shot entirely without dialogue or sound, for stretches, Monteiro uses this performance to punctuate his thematic intentions, with woman being the spectacle and man the spectator in this world we inhabit. Being my first film from the renowned filmmaker I was surprised by how simple but effective his direction is, with great use of long takes and composition that are technically and aesthetically pleasing. My favorite direction choice in the entire film is when Samuel and Esperanca first go to bed together, which finds Monteiro focusing solely on the two characters faces in a stoic composition that never is explicit in the slightest, as if he is visually expressing the love vs. lust aspect of intimacy. Joao Cesar Monteiro's The Last Dive is a poetic story of life and death, as Mr. Eloi is able to correct the mistakes he has made in the past, helping Samuel look past his primitive male gaze and find the importance in love.
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AuthorLove of all things cinema brought me here. Archives
June 2023
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