Sócrates (film)

As of October 2021, the film has an approval rating of 90% based on reviews from 29 critics on Rotten Tomatoes. The site's critical consensus reads, "Brought brilliantly to life by Christian Malheiros' soulful performance, Socrates uses one boy's story to check a nation's pulse."[24] As of November 2020, the film received a score of 82 out of 100 on Metacritic based on 10 reviews, indicating "universal acclaim" and placing it in the site's top 50 best films of 2019.[25]

The New York Times selected it as a Critic's Pick, where it was reviewed by Jeannette Catsoulis, who wrote, "'Socrates' isn’t simply about being gay, or poor, or even devastatingly unloved: It’s about honoring a resilience that most of us will thankfully never have to summon."[26] A Los Angeles Times review by Carlos Aguilar called the film an "affecting and necessary debut."[27] In a four star review on RogerEbert.com, critic Godfrey Cheshire called the film "a work whose accomplishments signal a director of great promise."[28] Writing for Film Threat, critic Alex Saveliev noted that the film has "an authenticity rarely seen in contemporary cinema."[29] In a five star review for O Estado de São Paulo, influential Brazilian critic Luiz Carlos Merten said that Socrates should have been Brazil's official entry for the Academy Award for Best International Feature, citing its themes and its nominations at the Independent Spirit Awards, which he referred to as the "Independent Oscar."[30]

Critics also focused on Christian Malheiros' award-winning performance. Writing for The Hollywood Reporter, critic Frank Scheck called his performance "stunning."[31] In Variety, critic Dennis Harvey wrote "Malheiros’ terrific turn makes this protagonist credibly tough by necessity, and mature beyond his years."[32] In The Los Angeles Times wrote that Malheiros' "facial gestures oscillate between stoicism and crushing wails."[27] The New York Times wrote that "his charm and energy draw us immediately to his side."[26]

The film was shortlisted for Brazil's official entry for the Academy Award for Best International Feature.[4][5][6] It was also nominated for Best Male Lead (Malheiros), the John Cassavetes Award (best film with a budget under $500,000), and the Someone to Watch Award (Moratto) at the 2019 Independent Spirit Awards,[7] winning in the latter for Moratto.[8] In March 2019, it won the prestigious Jordan Ressler First Feature Award at the Miami International Film Festival.[9]

Malheiros won the Special Jury Award at the 67th Mannheim-Heidelberg International Film Festival, one of the longest-running film festivals in Europe. Of his performance, the festival noted:

"A jury watches a lot of films. If one thing sticks with you that you don’t forget, it is often a face. In this case it is the face of Christian Malheiros in the Brazilian Film 'Socrates'. The worry, the happiness and the hope in this face – and his fight in the big city jungle of São Paulo – will not soon be forgotten by those who see it. That is why this year’s Special Jury Award goes to the actor Christian Malheiros in the film 'Socrates'."[20]