'É de chuá' (What a delight!) may be weak in the 'plot department' but it is really great in the musical front. The story is full of holes. If one has enough capital to rent and furnish such a big house and then put on a musical show of such magnitute one is hardly ever 'poor'. The notion that any jewelry establishment would expose their gems in such a fashion is preposterous.
10 February 1958 - 'É de chuá' opens in Sao Paulo after having premiered in Rio on 26 January 1958.
Renata Fronzi (Maria Xangai)
Renato Restier (Juca Moleza)
Ankito (Peteleco)
Grande Otelo (Laurindo)
Zezé Macedo (Biluca)
Costinha (detective)
Bill Farr (detective Bill)
Duarte de Moraes (Joaquim)
Carlos Costa (Astrogildo, footman)
Fininho (jewelery man)
Pedro Dias (doctor)
Malu (Laura)
Maria Xangai (Renata Fronzi) and her beau Juca Moleza (Renato Restier) usually meet at a Joaquim's a popular dance joint near the slums. Juca concocts a big plan to try and pilfer rich people's jewelry by passing off as Mr & Mrs Caxangai, the noveau riche in town. They throw a big party in which jewels would be paraded as in a fashion show.
Everything was going according to plan until Peteleco & Laurindo (Ankito & Grande Otelo) show up at the party soliciting funds for their yearly parade at Carnaval. Peteleco ends up swallowing a big diamond the fat jeweller (Fininho) was showing the trendies.
Peteleco is soon made prisoner until he passes the diamond through his bowels which would take some time. Two undercover policemen (Bill Farr & Costinha) are in the house too when all hell break loose for the gangsters decide they would open up Peteleco's gut to get hold of the precious stone. This unbelievable story takes 2 hours to be told... with the interruption of nothing less than 16 musical numbers.
Laurindo & Peteleco are gluttons who end up no good.
Maria Xangai & Juca Moleza plan to become Mr & Mrs Caxangai and raid the high-society of their jewelry.
Renata Fronzi ready to go the great Theatro Municipal's ball; Zezé Macedo does her best Ben Turpin impersonation while Costinha is no more than okay as an undercover cop.
the plan to spoil the high-society is under way...
the jewelry man (Fininho), Otelo & Ankito & Astrogildo (Carlos Costa), the footman from hell.
Fininho reminds one of Fatty Arbuckle (Chico Boia).
Astrogildo roughs up Ankito after he swallows a big gem...
Joaquim (Duarte de Moraes) at his dancing joint wants to get paid for the services already rendered.
Jamelão opens up musical numbers with 'Não quero mais'
Agostinho dos Santos introduces 'Maria Xangai' (nasceu no fim-do-mundo e de lá ela não sai)...
'Maria Xangai' written by Ibrahim Sued, Mario Jardim & Alcir Pires Vermelho.
Agostinho sings at Joaquim's joint.
Agostinho approaches Maria Xangai and invites her to dance with him.
Juca Moleza doesn't like it at all and threatens to raise hell...
Bill Farr teaches his students the ABC in 'Aula de amor'.
be-a-bá, be-e-bé, vou te mostrar como é;
be-i-bi, be-o-bó, be-u-bú, um beijinho é que é bom p'ra xuxú!
detective Bill inquires Mrs Caxangai about her husband's wealth...
Mrs Caxangai is not too pleased with such an interrogation.
after some discord Bill & Xangai seem to be getting closer...
Carlos Augusto as gay as can be sings 'Você é demais'
Emilinha sings something about 'Mulher de terceira duzia'...
talking about Emilinha... here's Carequinha to sing Miguel Gustavo's 'Fanzoca do radio': 'Ela é fã da Emilinha, não sai do Cesar de Alencar, grita o nome do Cauby, e depois de desmaiar, abana a Revista do Radio e começa a soletrar...'
Gilberto Alves was short, middle-aged (44) & unfashionable but what-the-heck who cared?
Neuza Maria could not be more stylish in her gown & pose. She sings 'Eu sou o tostão'; I wonder what she would wear if she'd be the full currency.
whenever you saw Dircinha Baptista you looked again and saw her sister Linda too; 'Topada' is her number here.
Linda Baptista was the happier (and plumper) of the two Baptista sisters. She sings 'Qual é o caso?'.
Trio de Ouro - Raul Sampaio (30), Lourdinha Bittencourt (33) & Herivelto Martins (47) - with 'Adeus Mangueira' were a discordant note in this gay celebration of good times...
Nelson Gonçalves with 'Boemia'... damps the spirits of a high-octane happy atmosphere...
Ruy Rey tells us a recipe on how to be popular with women: 'Passo cola no corpo p'ra mulher grudar em mim' (I besmirch my body with glue for women to get stuck on me...)
Ruy Rey calls out: 'Madureira chorou!'... Joel de Almeida tells the story of show-girl Zaquia Jorge who owned her own theatre at Madureira, a popular suburb in Rio de Janeiro who tragically drowned while swimming at Barra da Tijuca on 22nd April 1957. The lyrics go: Madureira chorou, Madureira chorou de dor quando a voz do destino obedecendo ao Divino a sua estrela chamou.
Ankito & Grande Otelo in their final number.
'É de chuá' shows real footage of Theatro Municipal's great Carnaval ball of 1957.
the enormity of Theatro Municipal's Carnaval ball on the silver screen.
Na gafieira do Joaquim (Duarte de Morais) Maria Xangai (Renata Fronzi) & Juca Moleza (Renato Restier) armam um plano de se passarem por Sr. & Sra. Caxangai, casal do high-society e atraírem um rico joalheiro (Fininho) para uma festa em mansão que alugariam. Dois agentes de policia (Bill Farr & Costinha) se infiltram no esquema enquanto os sambistas Peteleco (Ankito) e Laurindo (Grande Otelo) também batem à porta da mansão para angariar fundos num 'livro-de-ouro' para pagarem os 80 mil cruzeiros das fantasias-de-carnaval que devem ao Joaquim. Peteleco acaba engolindo um valioso brilhante do joalheiro, que pensara ser uma bala. O sambista passa então a ser perseguido pelos bandidos, joalheiro e um médico atrapalhado (Pedro Dias) que chamaram.
Moleza & Xangai come to no good... Xangai in typical Brazilian fashion tries to extricate herself from any guilt in the whole scheme and says she would never have got into the schemes if she'd known it was 'dishonest'. Moleza answers she knew he never did one honest thing in his life. In the end Moleza is more ethical than Xangai...
Moleza is arrested and Maria Xangai gets the Prince Charming... oh! what a farce! And yet so close to the real world...
magazine 'Mondo Italiano' written in Italian for the Italian community living in Brazil, splashed two of their pages full of 'É de chuá' matter (in Portuguese) for their readears' delight.
final tussle... Bill gets hold of his badman, Juca Moleza gets entangled with Peteléco & Laurindo...
