The Way He Looks (2014)

Ghilherme Lobo and Fábio Audi star in writer/director Daniel Ribeiro’s 2014 coming-of-age film THE WAY HE LOOKS (Hoje Eu Quero Voltar Sozinho).

THE WAY HE LOOKS is based on Ribeiro’s award-winning 2010 short film I DON’T WANT TO GO BACK ALONE. The feature film was announced in 2012, went into production in 2013 with the original 3 cast members returning, and premiered at the Berlin International Film Festival in 2014.

The film follows Leo (Ghilherme Lobo), a blind teenager, as he attempts to find independence from the structure laid out for him by his parents, teachers, and friends. Leo’s best friend Giovana (Tess Amorim) has feelings for him. They spend most of their free time together and she helps him get to, and from, school. At home, Leo’s parents have only just begun to allow him to stay alone; he feels infantilized and unable to grow in such a controlled environment. But, when a handsome new student named Gabriel (Fábio Audi) takes interest in Leo things begin to change.

In and interview with FilmLinc in 2014, Ribeiro stated:

“My film is about a blind teenager falling in love with another guy. I thought that a blind character discovering he was gay would be a great way of discussing the origins of our sexuality. Leonardo is a character that has never seen a boy or a girl and he falls in love with a guy. Also, sexuality is usually associated with the sense of sight and a blind character brings a new approach to the way we fall in love or feel attracted to other people.”

THE WAY HE LOOKS (Hoje Eu Quero Voltar Sozinho)

2014. Brazil.

Director: Daniel Ribeiro

Screenplay: Daniel Ribeiro

Starring: Ghilherme Lobo, Fábio Audi, Tess Amorim, Lúcia Romano, Eucir de Souza, Selma Egrei, Isabela Guasco, Victor Filgueiras, Drop Dashi, Guga Auricchio, Bárbara Pereira and Matheus Abreu

THE WAY HE LOOKS is one of my personal favourites. If you haven’t seen it, you can find it streaming on Kanopy (USA), Netflix (Brazil) – and available for rent/purchase (USA/UK) through AppleTV, YouTube and Amazon. It’s also available on DVD and Blu-ray.