The Year My Parents Went on Vacation

In 1970 Brazil and the world seemed to have been turned upside-down, but the biggest worry in young 12-year-old Mauro’s mind had little or nothing to do with the proliferation of military dictatorships in South America or with the Vietnam war. His biggest dream was to see Brazil become the three-time winner of the World Cup.

Mauro is at a stage in life when one moves from childhood into adolescence. He is forced to live without his parents, left-wing militants forced underground. They leave him with his grandfather. But something unexpected has happened to his grandfather and Mauro is left alone without being able to inform his parents. Shlomo, his grandfather’s next-door neighbor, a solitary Jewish man and employee of the local synagogue, winds up taking care of him. The unexpected cohabitation results in a plunge into unknown worlds, from which they emerge more mature than before.

While he waits for a call from his parents, Mauro learns to face a very often harsh and painful reality. He finds himself alone and repeats the saga of his grandparents - Jewish immigrants - surviving in a new world. Mauro encounters a gallery of colorful characters including Hanna, an irreverent tom boy and street savvy girl, with an enormous talent for making bets and business deals; the pretty waitress Irene, who sparks the imagination of all the kids from the block; the Rabbi, a fan of the Corinthian soccer team; the Brazilian Italian man Ítalo who is involved in student demonstrations, and Edgar, the mulatto goalie of the local soccer team. With his new friends, Mauro shares his passion for soccer, his first sexualdiscoveries and his desire to regain the happiness suffocated by the dictatorship.

"Sensitive, delicate and involving." (Deborah Young, Variety)

“Proof of the wonderful renaissance of Brazilian cinema.” (Kirk Honeycutt, Hollywood Reporter)

Brazil’s Official Selection for the 2008 Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film.