Amor.estranho.amor.-love.strange.love-.1982.vhs... |top|
The keyword string is a digital artifact of this censorship era.
Then comes the infamous sequence. Hugo, the boy, wanders into Anna’s (Xuxa’s) room. She is bathing. What follows is a six-minute sequence that is neither graphic hardcore (no penetration, no erect phallus) nor innocent. The camera lingers on the boy’s terrified yet curious face as Xuxa’s character caresses him, removes his pajamas, and guides his hand over her body. She whispers, “Don’t be afraid. This is love.”
The movie is well-known for its famous cast, its beautiful style, and the massive arguments it caused in Brazil. The Story of the Movie
The VHS is also the only version that contains the (approximately 120 minutes). Later European DVD releases (under the title Love, Strange Love ) were cut by several minutes, and the colors were digitally brightened—ironically making the film look cheaper. The VHS retains Khouri’s intended gloomy, oppressive atmosphere.
to prevent the film’s distribution and broadcast in Brazil. The Underground Era Amor.Estranho.Amor.-Love.Strange.Love-.1982.VHS...
The Obscene Imagination: Brazilian Erotic Cinema 1978-1987 by Dr. Helena Sodré.
The is hard to find because of a long legal battle. After Xuxa Meneghel became a famous star for children, she did not want people to see her in an adult drama movie. She went to court to stop anyone from selling, showing, or distributing the film in Brazil.
Legal and cultural fallout: The film’s controversies around distribution and censorship illuminate changing legal frameworks and social norms. These dynamics have shaped access to the film and fueled debates about artistic freedom versus protection of minors.
Between 1991 and 2018, Xuxa embarked on an unprecedented campaign to erase the film from public existence. She paid around R$ 345,000 annually to the producer, Cinearte, to prevent the film's distribution and to buy up existing VHS copies. This was not a voluntary withdrawal. Court records show she won a legal injunction in 1991 from a young judge named Luiz Fux (who would later become President of Brazil's Supreme Court), forbidding its sale. For almost three decades, the only available copies were a handful of rare VHS tapes released by CIC Video that slipped through the dragnet, quickly becoming collector's items for the price of gold. The film became a ghost, its reputation preserved only by rumor and a poor-quality English dub found on underground torrents. The keyword string is a digital artifact of
The film received a 4K restoration and a retrospective at the Cinemateca Brasileira, solidifying its place in the history books. Yet, the original VHS tape remains a powerful object. It represents a time when a single person—a pop star with enough money and influence—could successfully erase art from a nation's cultural landscape. For collectors, the VHS is not just a movie; it is a trophy of that extinct era, a tangible relic of a censorship more efficient than any military decree.
: A young Hugo is sent to live in a mansion/brothel run by his mother, Anna (Vera Fischer). The film uses his perspective to explore the intersection of adult sexuality and childhood innocence. The "Strange" Love
Walter Hugo Khouri famously said: "It is not a film about sex. It is a film about the loss of innocence in a country that had lost its innocence."
: The film is noted for its lush art direction and somber, atmospheric lighting. She is bathing
Overview
The story is told through a framing narrative: an adult man named Hugo looks back on a pivotal moment from his childhood in 1937, when he was sent to live in a luxurious brothel managed by his mother.
Main themes