A jaguar kills a man in the middle of the forest by the Brazilian Atlantic coast, in the heart of the nature reserve Arraial do Sana. Three siblings, Alan, Alex and Betina reunite to organize the funeral of their father, Zé Maria, after his tragic death. Alex, the eldest, arrives by car with Emma, his French wife. He has apparently made something of himself. Alberto, the middle sibling, arrives in women’s clothing and now goes by the name of Betina. The story is told by Alan, the youngest, who claims to be studying medicine in Rio. Actually, he has turned to literature and wants to become an author. In his narrative, he alternately addresses the mother and the siblings.
The recently deceased father was obviously not a saint in his own home, as the title suggests. On the contrary, he was only perceived as a saint outside his own family, in the little town where he lives, was liked by many and, thanks to his knowledge of the forest plants, a respected healer. For his wife Rute, on whom he continuously inflicted violence, and his three children, he was the devil. While the town holds a procession to bid farewell to a beloved resident, Rute and her children go through the complexities of mourning between longing and the marks of oppression.
Home Saint (“Santo de casa”) touches on deep wounds and exemplifies how much the patriarchal system precariously affects the subjectivity of men themselves.