Do not allow the sorrow of grieving to interfere with the power of hatred and revenge. This message, delivered by a family matriarch (Marieta Severo), is clearly understood by the three sisters who are the title characters in THE THREE MARIAS. The sisters are called home when their father and two brothers are brutally murdered in separate slayings, all ordered by a man from their mother's past. The grieving widow and mother responds to the killings by commanding her daughters to act. She assigns each daughter a hitman in order to avenge the deaths. Various complications keep these mercenaries from carrying out their tasks and the sisters must take it upon themselves to finish the job, as each of the Marias targets one of the three killers.
The eye-for-an-eye mentality of this Brazilian thriller is just one of many themes drawn from the Bible. Gothic imagery and quotes from the scriptures also harken back to biblical roots while the remote Brazilian locations add a grim, melodramatic quality to the film.
Theatrical Release: MAY 30, 2003
DVD Features:
Region [unknown]
Stars
Marieta Severo: Actor, THE THREE MARIAS (2003)
Julia Lemmertz: Actor, THE THREE MARIAS (2003)
Maria Luisa Mendonca: Actor, THE THREE MARIAS (2003)
Luiza Mariani: Actor, THE THREE MARIAS (2003)
Carlos Vereza: Actor
Director
Aluisio Abranches: Director, THE THREE MARIAS (2003)
Producer
Vieri Razzini: Producer, THE THREE MARIAS (2003)
Cesare Petrillo: Producer, THE THREE MARIAS (2003)
Marcelo Durst: Producer, THE THREE MARIAS (2003)
Screenwriter
Wilson Freire: Screenwriter, THE THREE MARIAS (2003)
Heitor Dhalia: Screenwriter, THE THREE MARIAS (2003)
Executive Producer
Aluisio Abranches: Director, THE THREE MARIAS (2003)
Executive Producer
Eva Mariani: Executive Producer, THE THREE MARIAS (2003)
Music
Andre Abujamra: Music, THE THREE MARIAS (2003)
Review 1:
"[I]t features some of the craziest eccentrics since EL TOPO, a cult Latin Western it surely aims to rival."
Source: Sight and Sound
p.63 02/01/2004
Review 2:
"Director Aluizio Abranches maintains a spirited pace throughout....Invigorated by directorial intensity and offbeat details."
Source: Box Office
p.151 04/01/2004