Forbidden Wedding 2001
Distributed by Filmakers Library, 124 East 40th St., New York, NY 10016; 212-808-4980
Produced by Flavia Fontes
Directed by Flavia Fontes
VHS, color, 56 min.
Adult
Ethics, Disability Studies
Date Entered: 11/09/2018
Reviewed by Nancy E. Frazier, E. H. Butler Library, State University of New York College at BuffaloTragically shot and paralyzed at the age of 15, Hedir is a middle-aged Brazilian man in love with Mara, his widowed caretaker. Their marriage plans are thwarted when they receive a letter from their local bishop denying their right to marry within the Roman Catholic Church. The letter cites Vatican Canon Law 1084, stating that antecedent or perpetual impotence to have intercourse invalidates marriage. When questioned by his local priest, Hedir openly discusses his impotency due to paraplegia. Forbidden Wedding explores issues of love, faith, privacy, and the rights of disabled people.
Outraged and humiliated, Hedir contacted a local radio station and media attention grew. The filmmaker read about the couple and wanted to document their story. Set to haunting guitar music performed by Fabio Zanon, the film includes interviews with the couple and members of their families, local priests, and townspeople of Patrocinio, Brazil. Hedir and Mara discuss their love for each other and the pain involved with having the church invade their private lives. Questions of love, sexuality, the meaning of intimacy, and faith are presented through numerous perspectives—parish priests, old and young members of their community, and family members. Through the media attention about the couple’s plight, they were able to marry within the more liberal Brazilian Catholic Church.
Recommended for general adult audiences and library collections with an emphasis on the rights of people with disabilities.