Bad Living

Bad Living (Portuguese: Mal viver) is a 2023 Portuguese-French drama film directed by João Canijo. Starring Anabela Moreira and Rita Blanco, the film portrays story of a family of several women from different generations, whose relationships with each other have grown poisoned by bitterness.[2][3] It was selected to compete for the Golden Bear at the 73rd Berlin International Film Festival, where it had its world premiere on 22 February 2023.[4] It won Silver Bear Jury Prize at the festival.[5] In September 2023, it was selected as the Portuguese entry in the Best International Feature Film category for the 96th Academy Awards.[6][7]

Bad Living
Official poster
PortugueseMal viver
Directed byJoão Canijo
Written byJoão Canijo
Produced byPedro Borges
Starring
  • Anabela Moreira
  • Rita Blanco
  • Madalena Almeida
  • Cleia Almeida
CinematographyLeonore Teles
Edited byJoão Braz
Production
companies
  • Midas Films
  • Les Films de l'Après-Midi
Release dates
  • 22 February 2023 (2023-02-22) (Berlinale)
  • 11 May 2023 (2023-05-11) (Portugal)
Running time
127 minutes
Countries
  • Portugal
  • France
LanguagePortuguese
Box office$85,485[1]

At the same time, the director has made another film, Living Bad, in which the main focus is on guests coming to the hotel. The two films were released as a diptych. In his statement the director said that for the screenplay about the hotel guests, he was inspired by motifs from plays by August Strindberg.[8] Living Bad was selected at the 73rd Berlin International Film Festival in Encounter.[9]

Synopsis

A group of women from different generations of the same family is running a hotel in Ofir, (in the municipality of Esposende, by the northern shore of Portugal). Their relationships with each other have gone sour and they are trying to survive in the declining hotel. Then an unexpected arrival of a granddaughter stirs trouble, as the latent hatred and piled-up resentments comes to fore.

Cast

Production

The film was shot over a 12-week period in early 2021 at the Hotel Parque do Rio in Praia de Ofir.[10] At the same time, Living Bad , a second film was made, that focuses on the guests of the hotel. According to a producer of the film, the sound and content are said to be "two completely different films". "One becomes more interesting when you see the other," explained the producer Pedro Borges.[9][10][8]

Release

The film had its World premiere at the 73rd Berlin International Film Festival on 22 February 2023. It is slated for theatrical release in Portugal on 11 May 2023.[10]

Reception

On the review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes website, the film has an approval rating of 75% based on 8 reviews, with an average rating of 8/10.[11]

Nicholas Bell in IonCinema.com graded the film 4/5 and wrote, "But this is inherently the essence of Bad Living, concerning a handful of humans making decisions which actively poison them slowly, until someone invariably can’t take it any more."[12] Leslie Felperin of The Hollywood Reporter calling the film "Bad to the bone" wrote, "Punishingly slow, grandiloquently depressing and ultimately not even especially convincing psychologically, Bad Living feels like the work of people who sincerely believed they were making great art." Felperin added, "Sadly, they were mistaken."[13] Lee Marshall for ScreenDaily wrote in review, "A haunting work with a ritualistic feel, as if its five central characters have been possessed by the souls of some ancient Greek theatre troupe."[14]

Accolades
Award Date Category Recipient Result Ref.
Berlin International Film Festival 25 February 2023 Silver Bear Jury Prize Bad Living Won [15][5]

See also

References
  1. "Bad Living". Box Office Mojo. IMDb. Retrieved 11 October 2023.
  2. "Bad Living: A Feature film by João Canijo". Unifrance. Retrieved 3 February 2023.
  3. "Bad Living, João Canijo". Portuguese Film Agency. 10 February 2023. Retrieved 10 February 2023.
  4. Rosser, Michael (23 January 2023). "Berlin Film Festival reveals 2023 competition line-up". Screen Daily. Retrieved 3 February 2023.
  5. Scott Roxborough (25 February 2023). "Berlin: French Documentary 'On the Adamant' Wins Golden Bear for Best Film". Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 26 February 2023.
  6. Jorge Pereira Rosa (14 September 2023). """MAL VIVER" É O FILME PORTUGUÊS CANDIDATO AOS OSCARS"" [“Bad Living” is the PORTUGUESE film nominated for the Oscars]. C7nema. Retrieved 20 September 2023.
  7. Ellise Shafer (18 September 2023). "International Oscar Race: Portugal Selects João Canijo's 'Bad Living'". Variety. Retrieved 20 September 2023.
  8. "Living Bad". Midas Films. Retrieved 3 February 2023.
  9. ""Mal Viver" e "Viver Mal": filmes de João Canijo vão estar na competição do Festival de Cinema de Berlim" ["Mal Viver" and "Viver Mal": films by João Canijo will be in competition at the Berlin Film Festival]. Expresso50 (in Portuguese). 23 January 2023. Retrieved 3 February 2023.
  10. Bismuto Labs-Web Design e Marketing Digital (23 January 2023). ""Mal Viver" e "Viver Mal" de João Canijo em estreia mundial no Festival de Cinema de Berlim" [“Mal Viver” and “Viver Mal” by João Canijo in world premiere at the Berlin Film Festival]. Culture and Art Community (in Portuguese). Retrieved 3 February 2023.
  11. "Bad Living (Drama 2023)". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved 15 September 2023.
  12. Bell, Nicholas (22 February 2023). "The Best Exotic Portugal Hotel: Canijo Examines Motherhood as Misanthropy in Masterful Familial Miasma". IonCinema.com. Retrieved 23 February 2023.
  13. Felperin, Leslie (22 February 2023). "'Bad Living' ('Mal Viver') Review: A Miserable Melodrama of Female Cruelty". Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 23 February 2023.
  14. Marshall, Lee (23 February 2023). "'Bad Living': Berlin Review". ScreenDaily. Retrieved 23 February 2023.
  15. Ramachandran, Naman; Vivarelli, Nick (23 January 2023). "Berlin Film Festival Reveals Competition Lineup (Updating Live)". Variety. Retrieved 3 February 2023.
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