A film with more than the usual spoiler issues. Talking about it in any detail feels akin to handing you a gift-wrapped present and saying, "I hope you like it -- It's a thriller about a diabolical secret experiment."

The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

The movie's neither hopeful in contrived ways, nor hopeless in different contrived ways. Somehow it manages to be wonderful

It's the kind of movie you'll want to see a second time with someone who hasn't seen it yet, to remember what it was like to watch it for the first time.

This movies tells the interesting story of a nanny, Val, and her daughter, Jessica. The two have not seen each other in about ten years, and out of the blue, Jessica calls and is on her way to Sao Paolo to begin applying for university. The rest of the movie is a portrayal of Jessica and Val's rocky relationship over the socioeconomic classes that dictate Val's oppressed behavior. The most confusing part of the story for me is Jessica's aggressive reaction to her mother's position within the family that she is serving. The movie does not go into much details as to where Jessica was raised, but it is hinted that she came from the northeast. Her attitude is almost entitled as if she too is coming from the highest of the socioeconomic class of Brazil. While I disagree with the manner in which Val is treated by the family, there are certain social graces that most people understand regardless of socioeconomic class. Jessica's aggressive behavior causes a lot of tension between her and her mother, and I still do not understand where this is coming from. WE do not know if she is coming from a higher socioeconomic class than her mother. My theory is that she maybe is harboring a little bit of jealousy. Val has more or less been the mother figure to the son of the family, Fabrinho. While Jessica at a young age, had her mother stolen from her, Fabrinho had two. Sort of. Val seems to be kinder and more caring towards this young boy that is not even her own child. As a daughter, that must be hard to watch, and that is why I believe that Jessica is a little aggressive in her behavior at the family's home. The children of the domestic workers are almost getting the short end of the stick. She had to grow up without really knowing her mother, at the same time that her mother was taking care of a child that is not her own.

A realistic view into the ever-present but never-mentioned class barrier, The Second Mother addresses social identity problems through the eyes of a lifetime maid and her renegade teen daughter. Val works tirelessly for almost nothing in return, and at times we can't help but feel sorry for her. The family that she serves is obviously of stature, and at times they seem to treat Val like a part of the family. But it is all the other times that reveal exactly what it is like for someone in the same situation as Val. It only gets worse when her daughter, Jesica, arrives at the house. Dr. Carlos seems to take a liking to her, so she is allowed special privileges in the house that make Val very uncomfortable. Throughout the movie, it is eluded to that Barbara is the head of the household. She gives stern orders to Val, but also shows interest in her life when Val mentions the arrival of her daughter. This is ironic, because it is ultimately Barbara who shuns Jesica out of the house. For me, it is difficult to see someone as hardworking as Val be treated the way that she is, but that is the realization of social classes. I believe at one point in the movie, Val tells Jesica that all of the rules are in place for them because that is just how it is, that is how it has always been. In the end, it is Jesica that serves as motivation for Val to resist the status quo, and ultimately join Jesica on her renegade journey. The two of them together set off to find themselves and perhaps challenge the strangling social norms that have resisted their success in the past.

There's no getting around it, The Second Mother is just an excellent, excellent film, which cleverly balances multiple tones and issues while at the same time staying consistent, enjoyable and heartbreaking. The mother of the title is Val (a deglammed Regina Casé), a woman from rural Brazil who has spent the better part of her life as a combination of housekeeper and nanny to a wealthy family. Though she has a daughter of her own, for the most part she has spent her maternal feelings on Fabinho, the spoiled teenage son of her employers. When Val receives a call from her daughter, Jéssica, telling her that Jéssica intends to study for exams to become an architect, Val is thrilled and overwhelmed. She asks her employers (who also house her) if Jéssica can stay with her, and when they say yes she is hopeful that the mother-daughter reunion will go well. But Jéssica's arrival exposes the fact that for all her employer's posturing that Val is one of the family, she is actually subservient, having to obey various rules and codes that constantly put her in her place. And Jéssica's arrival completely throws off balance the simple life Val once led. To say more would be to spoil the movie, but Anna Muylaert is such an assured director and the way she handles her material is fresh and clever.

Que horas ela volta is one of the best magical realism movie from our time. The main argument of this movie is about social relationships, familiar and professional ones, and beyond a sociology analysis of Brazilian society. The movie has a strong social message because is so close to the really, and so daily habits, we are used to social segregation in the same house, we forget it is so bad, and unfair with ourself. The movies leave us to think about basic things, for example, how different opportunities low and middle class has to access university, and how small habits can have a huge impact in the future.The movies support his vision not in a philosophical phrases or beautiful quotes, but in reality, everything in the movie is so real and close to ourself that director don't need use Foucault or Marx text, he just show a mirror of the reality, and it is way this movies is about magical realism, but not realism magical. And it is why hurts.