SFist Wendy thinks actor Rodrigo Santoro is cute!

If you see Not by Chance with several friends, like we did, it is very likely that everyone is going to walk away with a very different take on the film. Maybe that’s in part because some of us are more smitten with Rodrigo Santoro than others (you may remember him from 300, Love Actually, Carandiru, and even several episodes of Lost, among others).

The film, set in Sao Paulo, is Philippe Barcinksi’s debut feature. If you don’t go expecting to see another City of God or Amores Perros (or even Favela Rising or Twelve Labors from past festivals), you’re much less likely to be disappointed. A couple of our friends were disappointed by what they felt was a sluggish pace, and commented that they thought Not by Chance could have been condensed into about 30 minutes tops, but we didn’t really agree. Did we mention Santoro is hot?

Wendy and Rodrigo, sittin' in a tree -- after the jump!

SFist Wendy, contributing.

Contrary to the comments of the film’s introducer, we thought that at least one of the main characters in the film, Pedro (played by Santoro, sigh), the crafter of some beautiful pool tables and a pool shark himself, was anything but mundane. Pedro and Enio, a traffic engineer in Sao Paulo, have their lives turned upside down by a fairly random, but deadly, traffic accident that Enio actually witnesses in part on one of the traffic monitors that he sits in front of all day. The seemingly random tragedy brings at the same time, sorrow, strength, and enlightenment to both Pedro and Enio.

We were left with some questions at the end of Not by Chance, but we actually appreciated that everything wasn’t neatly tied up for us. Ultimately, though, we walked away with a feeling that in the larger scheme of things, and not by chance, both Pedro’s and Enio’s lives would somehow be enriched by the fallout from the tragedy that touched them both.

You can catch Not by Chance tonight at 6:30 at the festival, or again on Wednesday at 9:45. Both screenings are at the Kabuki. We’d go again if only for Rodrigo Santoro.