So, what about this film I created in 1973 and which will now, in 2023, be presented at the Berlinale Forum, a place that aims to challenge audiences with insightful new films, to illuminate the aesthetic and linguistic aspects of contemporary cinema?
It is difficult for me to define A RAINHA DIABA, a unique film that perhaps does not fit conventional labels because—despite the cuts, shots, and conflicts—I did not set out to make a police thriller, nor a realistic view of the criminal underworld of Rio de Janeiro.
The 33-year-old guy who in 1973 directed A RAINHA DIABA wanted to invent a contemporary film, which he announced as a blood-and-sequin gay-pop film. THE MARIJUANA WAR was to be the title of the film, but everything changed radically when, presenting my story to playwright Plínio Marcos; he suggested that the band of dealers who, fighting for power, would perish in the end, could be led by a sweet and cruel gay criminal, “The Devil Queen.”
What fascinated me as a director was the possibility of inventing a different reality, far from all polite limits.
The story I developed with Marcos brings the narrative to its bloody end, but the film, like all cinema I love, goes far beyond the story it is telling. What fascinated me as a director was the possibility of inventing a different reality, far from all polite limits, in camera movements, strident sound, art collages, set decoration, costumes, subversive makeup, penetrating music, burlesque acting, in the red of blood, in the gold of sequins.
I invented my direction on the film set, rehearsing the camera movements, and chasing the actors with my Super8, for José Medeiros to translate the movements on his unlocked 35mm camera. That was the spirit; it was my spirit, the spirit of the crew, and the spirit of the cast. One of unlocked creative freedom, rebellious, marginal, and happy. And the spirit remains, to be transmitted to those who watch the film now.
Milton Gonçalves, Odete Lara, Nelson Xavier, and Iara Cortes, are some of the fantastic actors from my bizarre cast no longer on this planet, but they are still very much alive in the frames of the film, lit, made up, dressed, adorned, and edited by creative artists who have also left us: Angelo de Aquino, José Medeiros, Carlos Prieto, Emiliano Ribeiro, Rafael Valverde, Guilherme Vaz, so many others.
To all of them and to filmmaker and producer Roberto Farias, who had the vision and courage to produce this film, my tribute is to share A RAINHA DIABA. This is a tribute that is only happening because William Plotnick, Kleber Mendonça, Zelito Vianna, Digital Link, and Debora Butruce joined forces for the digital restoration that you will enjoy.
With all my heart I thank them all and, of course, the Berlinale Forum, which is opening doors for the carnivalesque Devil Queen’s Ball.
Antonio Carlos da Fontoura
