Technically Impeccable, the Film "Road 47" Shines a Spotlight on Brazil's Participation in WWII

05/11/2015 - 09h38

It has been 70 years since the end of WWII, but Brazilian cinema has finally produced a great film about the FEB (Brazilian Expeditionary Force), the height of the country's participation in the greatest conflict in human history.

Brazil's participation was modest, which was all that was possible for an underdeveloped country. A mere 25,000 men were sent to fight on the frontlines in Italy from 1944 to 1945, when the major players measured their forces in millions.

But it was a dignified, honorable participation full of human interest. "Road 47" ("A Estrada 47") captured all of this, in addition to being a technically flawless film.

The film does not address any of FEB's major battles, like its several failed attacks and eventual conquest of Monte Castello or, more importantly, the taking of the small city of Montese.

The plot is completely fictional, albeit being based on fact, and the story takes place during the difficult winter of 1944-1945.

TRADITION

Members of an engineering unit are the film's main characters. It is a typical tradition, a true cliché of American war films: one military group is the center of attention. It can be a squad, a combat group or a mere posting of a dozen soldiers.

The group, in this case American, usually includes a redneck from the country, a scoundrel from New York, a Latino, an Italian, a Jew, or, in rare films, a black man. American armed forces were segregated during WWII; black soldiers fought in separate units.

The Brazilian group included a black sergeant - the Brazilian military was not segregated - and people from several regions of the country. The majority of FEB members were recruited in Rio, São Paulo, Minas Gerais and southern states, but there were a good number of northeasterners too.

In the film, journalist Rui drives a Jeep called Osvaldinho. An expert would immediately recognize the name: it was the Jeep of Brigadier General Osvaldo Cordeiro de Farias, artillery commander of the FEB, who baptized the Jeep with his son's name.

There has never been a Brazilian war film as technically well made. The combat scenes are precise; the American tanks are in fact classic M-4 Shermans. The scenes are shot in places that perfectly represent Italy where FEB fought.

Translated by JILL LANGLOIS

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