The Man Who Copied (2005) Plot Summary & Timeline

In the drab yet vibrant city of Porto Alegre, nineteen-year-old André Maciel navigates his monotonous life as a photocopy machine operator at a convenience store. His dreams of becoming an illustrator are stifled by repeated publishers’ refusals, leaving him mired in disillusionment and cravings for material wealth. Each evening, he retreats to his room, where he channels his frustrations into his drawings or indulges in the thrill of spying on his captivating neighbor, Sílvia, who lives across the street with her father, Antunes.

One fateful morning, André’s curiosity drives him to follow Sílvia to her job at ‘Sílvia’s,’ a luxurious lingerie store. While he lingers outside, contemplating an excuse to enter, Sílvia unexpectedly invites him inside, suggesting he consider a robe priced at R$38 as a birthday gift for his mother. However, André’s limited finances force him to promise Sílvia he will return to fulfill this commitment.

In the evenings, André finds companionship in Marinês (Luana Piovani), an alluring co-worker who introduces him to Cardoso (Pedro Cardoso), a suave individual emanating sophistication. Initially taken with Cardoso’s refined charm, André soon discovers his friend’s true colors. During a private moment, Cardoso makes an advance towards Marinês, only to be decisively spurned; Marinês reveals her true intentions as a gold digger, who harbors disdain for Cardoso’s smoking habit and suspects he is financially struggling due to his old, shabby shoes.

After spending a night at the club with Marinês, André bumps into Sílvia on a bus, where he reaffirms his intention to buy the robe. André’s perception of Cardoso is further shaken when he uncovers that Cardoso makes a living selling junk, emphasizing that appearances can be deceiving. In a moment of clarity, André realizes that Cardoso, like him, is driven by a desperate obsession with wealth, convinced that such riches are necessary to win Marinês’s affection.

In a twist of fate, André’s boss hands him a R$50 bill for errands, and succumbing to temptation, he decides to photocopy the bill, leading to a windfall of counterfeit currency. As he tries to unload the fake notes, he finds himself engaged in frenzied gambling at lottery booths. One day, Cardoso inadvertently uses one of André’s phony bills to buy drinks, prompting André to confess about his illegal activities. Together, they frequently visit the lottery, where André’s curious habit of playing the sequence “1 2 3 4 5 6” earns him ridicule from Cardoso, who believes no one could ever win with such a combination.

Meanwhile, a budding romance develops between André and Sílvia, culminating in a proposal. Initially unsure, Sílvia eventually agrees to marry André, yet he confesses that his counterfeit earnings cannot sustain her, prompting him to devise a more ambitious plan. He partners with Cardoso to carry out a bank heist, securing a firearm from the notorious drug dealer Feitosa using counterfeit cash. The heist is successful, but André’s brief anonymity comes at a cost when he unintentionally kills Antunes, an innocent bystander, during their escape.

As André and Cardoso breathe a sigh of relief, realizing that the police sketch of the robber bears no resemblance to him, they’re ecstatic to learn of André’s lottery win. However, their celebration is dampened by André’s anxiety about being recognized if he claims his prize publicly, considering the recent bank heist. Seeking security, the pair turn to Marinês for assistance in claiming their winnings.

With a fortune now at their discretion, André, Cardoso, and Marinês indulge in a shopping spree. Cardoso and Marinês check into a luxurious hotel for a romantic rendezvous, while André proposes to Sílvia again, but doubts linger regarding her father Antunes’s approval. Through a clandestine meeting with Antunes at a restaurant, André learns of Sílvia’s indifferent feelings towards her father. Antunes recognizes André and demands half of his lottery winnings, holding true to his claim that he won’t betray André regarding the heist.

Things take a dark turn when André is confronted by Feitosa, who has connected the dots between André and the bank heist through his probing inquiries about the gun. Realizing the threat Feitosa poses, André reluctantly agrees to repay him from the stolen funds.

That night, Sílvia confronts André at his doorstep after discovering his involvement in the robbery through Antunes. Initially, André suggests silencing Antunes with a payoff, but Sílvia proposes a chilling solution: eliminating him altogether, hinting at the darkness to come.

The following day, André traps Feitosa, leading to an unceremonious end for him. Subsequently, André, Cardoso, Marinês, and Sílvia contrive a plan to eliminate Antunes. Initially, their scheme stumbles, but they ultimately execute their target successfully, framing him for the bank heist in their wake.

As the screen fades to black, the friends gather at the iconic Christ the Redeemer statue in Rio de Janeiro, marking a significant moment in their lives. In a surprising twist, Sílvia encounters Paulo (Paulo José), prompting her to believe he is her long-lost father. It’s revealed that Sílvia cleverly orchestrated some of their earlier encounters, showcasing her steely resolve and a hidden quest for her true identity.