Keywords
Brazilian documentary
Brazilian film
the elderly
elderly sensuality
Petra Costa
Brazilian film
the elderly
elderly sensuality
Petra Costa
How to Cite
BEAL, S. Elderly intimacy in Petra Costa’s Documentary Olhos de Ressaca. Veredas: Revista da Associação Internacional de Lusitanistas, [S. l.], n. 26, p. 145–154, 2018. DOI: 10.24261/2183-816x1026. Disponível em: https://revistaveredas.org/index.php/ver/article/view/458. Acesso em: 19 apr. 2026.
Abstract
This article analyses how Brazilian director Petra Costa's 2009 short documentary Olhos de Ressaca brings to the fore a frequently forgotten, often taboo topic: the intimacy of the elderly. Costa's film thematically and aesthetically explores the intimacy of a couple in their eighties who have been married for decades. The documentary covers the full range of this period of life in a more open way than has been customary in film. Costa's attentive and imaginative engagement with the topic is displayed in the film's portrayal of skin, memory, and the way a couple's intimacy changes over time.
References
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Costa, Petra. Personal interview. 17 Feb. 2011a.
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Jacqot de Nantes. Directed by A. Varda. Paris: Canal +, 1991. 1 DVD. 118 min.
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Les Plages d'Agnès. Directed by A. Varda. Paris: Ciné Tamaris, 2008. 1 DVD. 110 min.
Lins, Consuelo; Mesqita Claudia. Filmar o real: sobre o documentário brasileiro contemporâneo. Rio de Janeiro: Jorge Zahar, 2008.
O Amor natural. Directed by H. Honigmann. [S.l.]: [S.n], 1996. 1 DVD. 76 min.
Olhos de ressaca. Directed by P. Costa. [S.l.]: [S.n], 2009. 1 DVD. 20 min.
Starr, Bernard D. Sexuality and aging. Lawton, M. Powell; Maddox, G. L. (Ed.). Annual Review of Gerontology and Geriatrics. New York: Springer, 1985. v. 5, p. 97-126.
Andrade, Carlos Drummond de. Family portrait. Translation by Elizabeth Bishop.
Bishop, Elizabeth (Ed.). An anthology of twentieth-century Brazilian poetry. Middletown, CT: Wesleyan University Press, 1972. p. 91-93.
Andrade, Carlos Drummond de. Retrato de família. In: Andrade, Carlos Drummond de. Obra completa 2nd ed. Rio de Janeiro: José Aguilar, 1967.
Assis, Machado de. Dom Casmurro. São Paulo: Martin Claret, 2002.
Bell, John. In search of a discourse on aging: the elderly on television. The Gerontologist, Washington, v. 32, n. 3, p. 305-311, 1992. Available in: <https://goo.gl/qsBGV5>. Accessed: 25 May 2011.
Bildtård, Torbjörn. The sexuality of elderly people on film — Visual limitations.
Journal of Aging and Identity, v. 5, n. 3, p. 169-183, 2000. Available in: <https://goo.gl/NME9Xp>. Accessed: 25 May 2011.
Costa, Petra. Personal interview. 17 Feb. 2011a.
Costa, Petra. E-mail interview. 29 Aug. 2011b.
Covey, Herbert. Perceptions and attitudes toward sexuality of the elderly during the Middle Ages. Gerontologist, Washington, v. 29, n. 1, p. 93-100, 1989. Available in: <https://goo.gl/QuvB5K>. Accessed: 25 May 2011.
Jacqot de Nantes. Directed by A. Varda. Paris: Canal +, 1991. 1 DVD. 118 min.
Janela da alma. Directed by J. Jardim & W. Carvalho. Rio de Janeiro: Ravina Filmes, 2001. 1 DVD. 73 min.
Les Plages d'Agnès. Directed by A. Varda. Paris: Ciné Tamaris, 2008. 1 DVD. 110 min.
Lins, Consuelo; Mesqita Claudia. Filmar o real: sobre o documentário brasileiro contemporâneo. Rio de Janeiro: Jorge Zahar, 2008.
O Amor natural. Directed by H. Honigmann. [S.l.]: [S.n], 1996. 1 DVD. 76 min.
Olhos de ressaca. Directed by P. Costa. [S.l.]: [S.n], 2009. 1 DVD. 20 min.
Starr, Bernard D. Sexuality and aging. Lawton, M. Powell; Maddox, G. L. (Ed.). Annual Review of Gerontology and Geriatrics. New York: Springer, 1985. v. 5, p. 97-126.
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Copyright (c) 2018 Sophia Beal