Drained

Drained (O Cheiro do Ralo, 2006) is a Brazilian black comedy from Heitor Dhalia, available to watch online on iFILM. Pawnshop owner Lourenço spends his days lowballing desperate people for their belongings — less for the money than for the thrill of holding power over them.

Two fixations run his life. One is the perfect backside of a waitress at the café next door, which he'll throw any amount of cash at. The other is the stench rising from a drain in his shop floor — a smell he can't trace and can't kill. The more control he wields over his customers, the more he comes apart himself.

Adapted from Lourenço Mutarelli's novel (the author turns up on screen), the film hands Selton Mello a petty tyrant he makes both repellent and pitiful. It's a satire of consumer greed and male entitlement where the laugh sticks in your throat. Strange, caustic and very Brazilian — one for fans of arthouse with teeth. Stream Drained (2006) online on iFILM.