TIFF Review: Nationalism, soccer and giant fluffy dogs collide in the wild satire Diamantino

Diamantino is a movie with a lot on its plate. The wild Portuguese film, directed by Gabriel Abrantes and Daniel Schmid, covers a smorgasbord of ideas, from the rise of fascist movements in Europe, the cult of celebrity, gender fluidity, the displacement and treatment of refugees, and much more. That it balances such hot-button issues in a trippy, surrealistic comedy that also features giant fluffy soccer-playing dogs makes it one of the most intriguing (and bewildering) films of the year.

The film focuses on its namesake Diamantino (Carloto Cotta), a famous soccer player who messes up a final crucial shot, leaving him in exile. With his life in ruin, Diamantino is suddenly stricken with the urge to do good in the world by rescuing one of the “fugees” (refugees) he’s become aware of. His very public declaration gets the attention of a lesbian tax official (Cleo Tavares), who devises a plan to pretend to be a young male refugee in hopes of investigating Diamantino for tax fraud. This throws a wrench into Diamantino’s home life, which includes his conniving twin sisters who are taking advantage of Diamantino’s diminutive intelligence for their own gain.

The plot spirals then spirals into something out of a Terry Gilliam film, with secret agencies pushing an anti-EU platform cashing in on Diamantino’s notoriety (and low intelligence) to cast him as their spokesman for their racist marketing campaign, while hatching a sci-fi-worthy plot to create an army of Diamantino clones.

Diamantino seems most concerned with celebrity culture, and the biggest laughs in the film come from Diamantino’s oversized ego (he sleeps on pillows emblazoned with his own face). This is a film that also touches on current hot-button issues like Brexit and the refugee crisis in an absurdist way without ever diminishing the issues themselves. If anything, the film serves to highlight the dangers of nationalism and protectionism while gleefully existing in a heightened state of absurdity, where sparkly shots of towering fluffy dogs on a soccer field can co-exist with the very real human drama unfolding in the film.

Alternating between “serious” drama and bonkers lunacy, Diamantino manages to remain engaging thanks to Cotta’s pitch-perfect portrayal of a well-meaning dolt in over his head, along with Tavares’ dual role as both a government official and as “Rahim,” the Mozambique “refugee” Diamantino adopts. A visually-rich movie bursting at the seams with ideas, Diamantino is a unique blast of weirdness that joins the ranks with the very best in absurdist cinema.