Released at last year's Toronto Film Festival, the response to Rodrigo Santoro's performance in Heleno has been strong enough that some have even begun to whisper about possible Best Actor consideration. While that seems far-fetched considering the film has a pretty low domestic profile, there's no doubt that it looks like the strongest work of the young actor's career playing the charismatic and combustible soccer star, Heleno de Freitas.
Co-written and directed by Jose Henrique Fonseca(The Man of the Year), the 1940s set film follows Heleno's career as one of Brazil's most famous soccer greats, gifted with Hollywood good looks and a self-destructive streak that constantly held him back. I'm seeing touches of Raging Bull in the way Fonseca presents Heleno's complex and volatile nature, and the black and white tone certainly adds to that as well. Most of all it's good to see Santoro given a chance to stretch himself a little bit. After appearing in the dismal What to Expect When You're Expecting earlier this year, he's set to co-star in Arnold Schwarzenegger's The Last Stand, and will reprise his role as Xerxes in 300: Rise of an Empire.
Does Santoro have what it takes to make some awards season waves? We'll find out when Heleno opens on December 7th. Check out the trailer below....
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