Sônia Braga and Marcello Mastroianni steam up 1920s Brazil in this sensual, messy romance about desire vs. respectability.
In 1925, Gabriela, a poor, uneducated, yet charming woman becomes cook, mistress, and then wife of Nacib, a bar owner in Ilhéus, a small Brazilian coastal town run by the local colonels.
Acting
Braga and Mastroianni's chemistry is absolutely criminal.
Cinematography
Lush Brazilian coastal visuals that make you sweat.
Costume
1920s tropical glamour with social-climbing anxiety.
Director
Bruno Barreto
Sônia Braga
Gabriela
Marcello Mastroianni
Nacib
Antonio Cantafora
Tonico Bastos
Paulo Goulart
João Fulgêncio
Tania Boscoli
Glória
Nicole Puzzi
Malvina
Flávio Galvão
Mundinho Falcão
Ricardo Petraglia
Prof. Josué
Lutero Luiz
Cel. Manoel das Onças
Jofre Soares
Cel. Ramiro Bastos
Sandro Solviatti
Jagunço chefe
Maurício do Valle
Cel. Amâncio Leal
Nildo Parente
Maurício Caires
Ivan Mesquita
Cel. Melk Tavares
Luiz Linhares
Cel. Jesuíno Mendonça
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Based on Jorge Amado's 1958 novel, which became a Brazilian cultural phenomenon and telenovela in 1975—this film adaptation arrived after Braga had already played Gabriela on TV.
Director Bruno Barreto was only 30 and married to star Sônia Braga at the time; they divorced two years later. The Mastroianni-Braga chemistry reportedly made things... complicated on set.
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