Caramelo: A Heartwarming Film Without Surprises

Pedro is a young chef with a head full of dreams and the skilled hands of someone who has made cooking their reason for living. He works as a sous chef in a renowned restaurant in São Paulo, creating innovative recipes that elevate traditional local and popular dishes. His daily routine is disrupted by a chance encounter with a stray dog with caramel-colored fur. Their first meeting takes place at the market, where Pedro is amused by the quadruped's attempts to steal a sausage from the butcher's stall. From there, the animal follows him to the restaurant and then even to his home, showing a persistence that goes beyond simple hunger.

It is Camila, the charming owner of an animal shelter, who notices an unusual and recurring behavior: Caramelo – the name given to the now-adopted animal – continues to obsessively lick his new owner's head, an attitude that could indicate the perception of something wrong. The protagonist, who had been suffering from severe headaches and dizziness for some time, decides to undergo medical checks, and the diagnosis is devastating: a potentially fatal brain tumor. In this moment of panic and absolute uncertainty, Pedro realizes that it is not Caramelo who needs to be saved, but the other way around, and he needs the unconditional companionship of his fresh four-legged friend more than ever.

Caramelo: All the Colors of Drama

Caramelo, directed by Diego Freitas, who also co-wrote the screenplay, fits into that long list of productions where animals are crucial to the lives of their human companions, focusing on raw emotion and a very positive message about adopting stray dogs rather than buying expensive breeds. In this case, the choice was made to hybridize the usually sweeter atmospheres with the darker ones of the cancer-movie, in a package that certainly appeals to the large audience of Netflix but which, while succumbing to some obviousness, manages to give a relatively credible portrayal of the disease and the various steps of acceptance related to it.

From the title, the operation openly intends to celebrate the "caramelo," that mixed breed with tawny fur that populates Brazilian streets and represents a symbol of resilience and adaptability in extreme conditions, creating a more or less (un)intentional parallel with the protagonist's fate. The director handles it with a certain sensitivity, allowing the relationship between Pedro and Caramelo to guide the key events of the narrative, with the more trivial, but not negligible, standard love story in support to instill a feeling of hope. The story alternates moments of lightness – with the dog wreaking havoc in Pedro's apartment or sneaking into the kitchen causing small or large disasters – with more tense and painful passages, linked to the extremely serious pathology. A measured approach is sought, aiming for hope and the celebration of life rather than commiseration, and in this, even the present rhetoric turns out to be more genuine than expected. 

Everything as Expected?

The main problem with the operation lies in its fundamental predictability. From the very first scenes, it is clear where the story is headed, and the epilogue itself ends up being quite obvious given the premises and the film's commercial soul, which remains so even in its most sincere and plausible moments. Pedro's emotional journey appears predetermined: denial of the illness, acceptance, rediscovery of what truly matters in life before it's too late, and salvific love, whether maternal or newly found with the girl of his dreams, while the bond with the dog grows and evolves in key scenes. Legitimate choices, but ones that remove the potential element of surprise.

Rafael Vitti portrays Pedro with decent naturalness, managing to make his character's journey credible without falling into excessive sentimentality. Certainly, the four-legged co-star often risks stealing the show, but the chemistry between the two is palpable and capable of moving a ready audience.

We are faced with a film that perfectly knows its limits and moves within them with a certain familiarity, relying on the tried and true of positive messages and good feelings, finding in the cast – whether on two feet or four paws – a credible vehicle for engagement.