Antonio Candido in his office in 1967Ana Luisa Escorel
At his mother’s suggestion, Antonio Candido began writing in journals at the age of 15. The sociologist and literary critic continued the practice until he died at the age of 98 in 2017, leaving 74 handwritten volumes. The final two are examined in detail in the film Antonio Candido, anotações finais (Antonio Candido, final notes; 2024), released in cinemas in September. Narrated by actor Matheus Nachtergaele, the documentary features a wealth of material, mostly from a collection of photographs amassed by Candido and his wife, the philosopher and writer Gilda de Mello e Souza (1919–2005). The collection of around 8,000 photographs was donated seven years ago to the University of São Paulo, where both were professors. In the feature film, Candido discusses subjects such as the physical fragility of “the enemy, old age,” the political crisis in Brazil during the downfall of the Dilma Rousseff administration, and his childhood in rural Minas Gerais. “In the last year and a half of his life, he looked back on his career without being paralyzed by melancholy, preserving his good humor and vitality,” says the film’s director Eduardo Escorel, who is Candido’s son-in-law (Superfilmes-Cinefilmes).
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