Before another February ends, there is a pertinent awareness that should not be overlooked, especially when it pertains to a recurring societal issue in the poorest areas, disregarded by the government and underscored by haunting statistics. In 2023, data from the Live Births Information System (SINASC), a tool of the Unified Health System (SUS), revealed that every day, 1,043 teenagers become mothers in Brazil. Moreover, every hour, 44 babies are born to teenage mothers, with two of these infants born to girls between the ages of 10 and 14. Some of these pregnancies are the result of familial abuse, while others stem from attempts to escape dire circumstances or from a lack of accessibility to information, exacerbated by societal taboos regarding sex. It is crucial to recognize that the blame does not lie with these young mothers; rather, the underlying roots persist, with capitalism remaining a significant factor. This year, 2024 marks the 15th anniversary of “Sonhos Roubados” (Sandra Werneck, 2009).
"Sonhos Roubados” means “Stolen Dreams” in English. The film opens with the protagonist, Jéssica (Nanda Costa), tracking her and sets the atmosphere in a favela, a real location with extras. There is a sense of narrowness, which could portray her limited choices and feeling trapped due to indigence. It links with the title; their dreams were stolen by capitalism. It suggests early maturation with the early motherhood, innocence taken under their living circumstances. Not only Jéssica’s, but her best friends too, Sabrina (Kika Farias) and Daiane (Amanda Diniz).
Each of them has a story to tell, a walk on their shoes. Jéssica, a single mother, navigates the challenges of raising her child while living with her alcoholic grandfather that repairs bikes and coping with the loss of her mother to AIDS. Sabrina, expelled from her home due to her relationship with a criminal who abandons her pregnant, finds solace in poetry and faces adversity working in a snack bar, where her act of kindness towards a hungry child leads to her dismissal. Daiane, the youngest of the trio, endures abuse from her uncle while living with her aunt and uncle, yet maintains her innocence and dreams to meet her father, 15 birthday party and be a hairdresser with the help from Dolores (Marieta Severo), her maternal figure, future responsible figure and former domestic maid. The breadwinner from Jéssica and Sabrina is prostitution. Both lie to their clients in order to eat and offer better conditions to their families.
Not only thematically, but among their stories, there are subtle references to other significant issues. A teacher went missing in their public school, which usually has precarious conditions. This absence of the teacher can easily generate a lack of interest and contribute to school dropout rates, thereby limiting horizons. The lack of education is subtly noticeable in their sociolect, and misspelled businesses names in their favela.
One of their clients is an incarcerated black man who has a venting moment about white privilege. The police "lost" bullets seem to always find their targets in black bodies.
Sabrina wanted to undergo an abortion, but it is costly, lacks quality access, and poses a risk to her life. Jéssica's mother's condition led her to access information about safe sex and condoms. Their relationships are portrayed as toxic, marked by physical and verbal aggressions.
The makeover transformation from her natural curly hair to blonde highlights the Western beauty standard with a racist undertone regarding her previous 'hard hair.' In Brazil, poverty does have a colour.
There is a line that caught me, “dressed like people” that referred to them dressed outside their comfort zone, it depicts the essence of the film and theme. Ignored issued because it comes from the marginalised individuals.
There is a line that caught my attention, 'dressed like people,' which refers to them dressing outside their comfort zone. It depicts the essence of the film and its theme: issues ignored because they are marginalized individuals. The citizens of paper, numbers in statistics, subject-matter in the news and subject-do-not-matter for society. Pure ghosts haunting society and invisible in the eyes of justice. This is noticed through Jéssica in the battle with her daughter’s custody. Sabrina’s pregnancy does not symbolize hope, it contributes to the sense of looping. The ending and beginning are similar, even though if it is satisfactory for each protagonist, they are in the same place socially and geographically, trapped as the cell bars depict. They illustrate this cycle, which remain recurrent after 15 years, a group of people hidden in these three characters without the satisfactory fiction taste.
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