Netflix’s latest Brazilian romantic drama, “Beyond the Universe (2022),” is about Nina- a gifted pianist who one day dreams of playing in the Symphony Orchestra in Sao Paulo. But this all changes when Nina suffers from Lupus; as she reaches adulthood, things only start worsening physically for her. It’s here when she meets a carefree resident doctor Gabriel, and the pair spark up an electric relationship. Will Gabriel risk his future career for their relationship? How will the pair find a place in the universe to be together?
Beyond The Universe (2022) Plot Summary & Movie Synopsis:
What Medical Condition Is Nina Diagnosed With?
The movie begins with her talking about love as pink and blue hues and magical stars cloud the screen. We learn how she wishes to find someone compatible with her, but what a daunting task that would be in a world of 7 billion people. An aspiring piano artist herself, Nina one day comes to learn how her kidney functions at below 10 percent. The doctor tells her that she would need an urgent transplant, the waitlist for which stands at 14,890. Because of the odds against her, Nina instead chooses to settle for hemodialysis three times a week with an AV fistula in her arm. Would this stop her from pursuing her dreams?
How Does The Movie Deal With Its Central Conflict?
After this meeting, Nina soon learns how her contract with the learning school will get terminated, which means she will no longer be able to practice piano at the conservatory. If the film’s opening sequence wasn’t enough to set the tone for the kind of cheesy and breezy romantic soap opera it was going to be, it’s here that the audience picks up on that cheese. A character tells Nina how there soon would be other doors that would present themselves in front of her. In the very next scene, we cut to a scene of Gabriel entering an abandoned mansion-of sort around his hospital, where he comes across an old piano. Coincidence?
What follows is the usual template that we’ve seen reoccur in countless Netflix dramas before. The couple meets on the terrace, talks about how pretty the sunsets look from there, and eventually falls in love. When Nina opens up about her inability to play the piano at the conservatory anymore, Gabriel takes her to the place from earlier where he had come across an old piano. In order to get her registered for the audition, Gabriel takes her to the other end of the gridlocked city before the deadline. The two go to a party the next day after spending a while around the piano, and the two kiss for the first time while dancing.
Through a frequently (over)used voiceover, we learn of Nina’s deteriorating health condition every time things seem to be going well. Even though the joint pain troubles her, she manages to play Beethoven’s ‘Moonlight Sonata’ with ease. Nina even gets selected for the final round, where Gabriel was supposed to be. But his father, Alberto, who also happens to be the hospital director, burdens him with work that day. He knew about Gabriel and Nina’s secret relationship.
However, after Nina’s piano audition goes well, Gabriel invites Nina to his hostel, who keeps coming over and intruding on the two. Gabriel makes up for this, surprising her after dinner as the two head to the hostel terrace that he’s decorated with neon lights. The two make love to each other as it rains, with the neon lights reflecting their moods. The following day, after he cooks breakfast for her, Nina asks him whether he became a doctor because of her father. He tells her how it was instead all for his mother, who had gotten diagnosed with breast cancer when he was very young.
How does Gabriel react to Nina’s deteriorating health condition?
After listening to Nina talk stressfully about how unlikely it is for her to get a kidney transplant, Gabriel acts out on his own. He secretly conducts a compatibility test and finds out through his father that they are not compatible. Gabriel’s father had found out about the test. He tries explaining to Gabriel that there are rules that he has to respect no matter what. But Gabriel isn’t ready to give up on his relationship with Nina, and he’s ready to face the residency committee.
It soon becomes clear that Gabriel did not share a healthy relationship with his father. He blamed Alberto for not being there by his mother’s side when she suffered from breast cancer. He even kept Gabriel away from his mother during the years of her treatment. Thus, he could never forgive his father for his mother’s undue death. This time, when his father tries to interfere in his relationship with Nina, he decides to choose love over rules.
When Gabriel finally confesses to Nina how he had taken a compatibility test, she guesses correctly before he can say how it does not match. It’s here where Nina confesses to him how much she loves her. The two sit in silence, close to each other, bound by the ways in which the hands of nature and destiny tend to work. Are they compatible? What does the term mean in its truest essence?
Does Nina pass the audition?
On the day of her major audition, on his way to the venue, Gabriel bumps into a car and hurts himself. Coincidentally, at the same moment, Nina starts feeling nauseous mid-performance as blood starts dripping off her nose and down on the piano, shocking the judges. The two scenarios are cross-cut fairly effectively, as the movie, for the first time, visually reinforces that there might be some deeper cosmic connection that the two lovers share. After being admitted the next day to the hospital, Nina learns of what had happened and later confesses the same to Gabriel, telling him how she knows he would lose his residency and get expelled for mingling with his patient.
The two split for a while, but after talking with a lady, Nina realizes what she’s done and, thus, decides she doesn’t want to let go of Gabriel because of being afraid of the future. She later interrupts the board meeting and confesses in front of everyone how she’s been coming to the hospital since she was 13, and thus, knows what kind of guy and doctor Gabriel is. He insists that his behavior with her has always been respectful and that patients would suffer if he went away. Later, Gabriel gets her the chance to audition again after making her perform in front of a supportive crowd.
Beyond The Universe (2022) Movie Ending, Explained:
After the audition, we sense that everything seems to be going well. One day, Gabriel feels determined to travel to the spot in the mountains where he once went with his mother. As Nina practiced on her piano back home, Gabriel was taking in the picturesque landscape. He places the picture of his mother on the ground, but the wind carries it away He then decides to grab it even though it is dangerous. While Gabriel did manage to get hold of the old picture, the rope he used in order to climb could not hold the weight any longer. Eventually, it breaks free, and Gabriel gets admitted to the hospital, but he doesn’t end up surviving. Nina feels devastated by Gabriel’s loss.
She and Alberto bond over memories of Gabriel, as the father talks about how he realizes what Nina meant to her. Alberto knew that Nina needed a kidney donor, and he, too, had decided to undergo a compatibility test. The result was positive, and Alberto decided to proceed with the process. The possibility delights Nina. When she asked Alberto the reason why he chose to donate his kidney, he explained that the medical field is about giving comfort, and since he knew he could provide that to Nina, he went ahead with it.
After the procedure, Nina decides to perform with the Symphony Orchestra finally. She dedicates a song to Gabriel, reminding the love of her life. He taught her to be optimistic. Even though he was not with her at the moment, she believed that he was watching over her and that their love was, indeed, beyond the universe.
Beyond The Universe (2022) Netflix Review & Final Thoughts
Eventually, Nina travels to the mountains, where Gabriel dreams of taking her someday. Even though she was alone, she could feel his presence and deep love for her. She now believes that compatibility is actually about being different yet feeling the presence of your loved one (as opposed to what she believed at the beginning of the film). “Beyond the Universe (2022)” is about Nina coming of age, learning to never give up on her life dreams while developing a better appreciation of the things around her.
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