The film’s reception is almost universally negative, largely because it fails to succeed on any conventional level. On Filmow, a Brazilian film review platform, users have consistently condemned its production values, acting, and subject matter. One user wrote, "The script plagiarizes several elements from Jean Garrett's excellent Mulher, Mulher (1979). The entire cast is incredibly bad! The sex scenes are simulated and, of course, poorly done. Likewise, the attempts at humor (like the talking horses) are terrible. When someone laughs, it's at the production's badness". On Letterboxd, users have echoed this assessment, with one famously quipping, "I don't speak Portuguese but I am pretty sure 'A Menina e o Cavalo' stands for 'The Tedious Escapades of a Perverted Horse Girl'". Another summarised the bizarre experience: "Despite all the present weirdness, the conversations of horny uncle horses were probably the worst (was it?). I think the sex inside the 'pool' of milk was the most interesting thing about this rottenness. I just hope they didn't waste real milk for the scene...".
The narrative follows (played by Aryadne de Lima ), a young woman struggling with hypersexuality and emotional instability. Seeking a reprieve from personal issues, she postpones her wedding to her fiancé, Beto (Antônio Rodi), and retreats to her family’s rural farm. A Menina E O Cavalo 1983
Cinematographer employs long, contemplative tracking shots that capture the galloping horse and the girl’s flowing hair in real time. There is a famous 4-minute sequence without dialogue where Vera simply lies in the grass, listening to the horse breathe. The camera lingers on the texture of the mane, the dust rising from a hoof, and the changing color of the sky at dusk. The entire cast is incredibly bad
No article about is complete without mentioning the soundtrack. Composed by Egberto Gismonti , the score blended classical guitar with indigenous flutes and the mournful sound of the berimbau . When someone laughs, it's at the production's badness"
Have you seen it? Or is this your first time hearing about it? 👇
is more than a movie; it is a rite of passage. It is the first time many Brazilian children understood that growing up means saying goodbye. It is a film where the horse is not a pet, but a mirror—reflecting the girl’s courage, her loneliness, and her capacity to love.
Seeking clarity, Márcia and Beto travel to her wealthy father's country estate ( fazenda ). There, they surprise her father, Dr. Ribeiro, and his insatiable new wife, Cordélia ( Edna Costa ).