Me You Them review

One man is never enough for the lusty heroine of this comedy, based on the true story of a woman who lived with three husbands in the north-east of Brazil. In the hands of Rio-born Andrucha Waddington, who assisted Walter Salles on the Oscar-nominated Central Station, this tale becomes a wry and tender comment on the ongoing sex war and the double standards that prevent women enjoying the same sexual freedoms as men.

Already a single mother, Darlene (Regina Casé) marries Osias (Lima Duarte) for financial security and bears him a son. What Osias can't provide - - a lust for life and a love of dancing, not to mention a rather dubious appetite for housework - - Darlene gets from his cousin Zezinho (Stênio Garcia). And what neither man can offer (romance, passion and good old-fashioned sex appeal) she gets from the handsome young farm hand Ciro (Luíz Carlos Vasconcelos)...

It could so easily have been the recipe for a shallow, saucy sex farce, but thanks to a warm and earthy performance from Casé - - one of Brazil's most popular television actresses - - this South American tale is, surprisingly, as moving as it is raunchy.