"Amor Estranho Amor" (Strange Love) is a 1982 Brazilian drama film directed by Francisco Ramalho Jr. The film explores themes of love, relationships, and societal norms through the lens of a non-traditional love story. Given the specificity of your request and the nature of the film, I'll propose a feature that could be both useful and respectful to the original work:
To understand the shock value of Love Strange Love, one must understand its plot. The film is a flashback from the perspective of a successful politician (played by Xuxa Lopes’ frequent collaborator). He recalls his adolescence in the 1930s, when he was a 12-year-old boy sent to live in a high-end brothel run by a woman named Laura (Vera Fischer).
The boy, Hugo, becomes an object of fascination and possession among the women of the house. The narrative builds toward a disturbing psychological climax: the boy loses his virginity not to a peer, but to the sophisticated, world-weary Ana (played by famous Brazilian TV star and later children’s icon, Xuxa Meneghel).
Yes. The same Xuxa. The "Queen of the Shorties," the beloved children's television host who later sang about Easter bunnies and xylophones, is at the center of one of the most controversial erotic scenes in cinema history. That dissonance—the innocence of a children's star colliding with the explicit nature of "strange love"—is why this film refuses to die. amor estranho amor love strange love 1982 english exclusive
Most Brazilian films from the pornochanchada era (a Brazilian sex-comedy genre) never received international dubs. Amor Estranho Amor was different. Investors saw potential for an art-house/grindhouse crossover in the United States and Europe. Thus, the English exclusive cut was produced.
Here is what makes the English version distinct from the original Portuguese:
For collectors, owning a copy of the Love Strange Love 1982 English exclusive is a badge of honor. These prints were often mislabeled, recorded in EP mode, and traded among collectors who swore the English dub was "dirtier" than the original. "Amor Estranho Amor" (Strange Love) is a 1982
In the landscape of controversial cinema, few films carry a backstory as troubling and misunderstood as Walter Hugo Khouri’s Amor Estranho Amor (released in English as Love Strange Love). For decades, the film was synonymous with a single, scandalous talking point: that it featured a 12-year-old Xuxa Meneghel—Brazil’s future “Queen of Children’s Television”—in a sexually charged scene. That fact alone ensured the film’s infamy. But for English-speaking viewers finally able to view the uncut version, Love Strange Love reveals itself as something far stranger and more melancholic than a simple exploitation curiosity.
If you manage to track down the English exclusive of Amor Estranho Amor (Love Strange Love, 1982), go in with your eyes open. This is not a date movie. It is not a nostalgic trip. It is a difficult, problematic, beautifully shot piece of celluloid that asks questions we are not comfortable answering.
Does the right to art supersede the protection of a child actor? Does an English dub create a new, separate work from the Portuguese original? These questions keep the film alive, buried in the strange, shadowy space between art-house and grindhouse. Re-edited Narrative: The English version truncates some of
The bottom line: Love Strange Love exists. It is strange. It is uncomfortable. And for those brave enough to seek out the exclusive English print—it is unforgettable.
Love Strange Love exists in a purgatory. Banned by its country of origin, disowned by its most famous star, and distributed for English audiences only in degraded bootleg-quality transfers, it remains a film more discussed than seen. For the curious English-speaking cinephile, it offers a rare glimpse into Brazil’s post-dictatorship psyche—a nation trying to reconcile its elegant, melancholic past with the uncomfortable truths of power and innocence. Watch it not for scandal, but for the unnerving silence at its core. It is the strangest love of all: a film that no one wants to claim, but no one can quite forget.
Availability for English viewers: Love Strange Love (1982) is out of print officially. Unauthorized DVD-R and digital copies circulate among collectors, usually sourced from the 1985 UK VHS. No streaming service currently hosts the uncut English-subtitled version.