Black God, White Devil
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Black God, White Devil | |
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Directed by | Glauber Rocha |
Written by | Glauber Rocha |
Produced by | Luiz Augusto Mendes |
Starring | Geraldo Del Rey Yoná Magalhães Othon Bastos |
Cinematography | Waldemar Lima |
Edited by | Glauber Rocha Rafael Justo Valverde |
Music by | Sérgio Ricardo |
Production company | Copacabana Filmes |
Distributed by | Herbert Richers Copacabana Filmes |
Release date |
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Running time | 120 minutes |
Country | Brazil |
Language | Portuguese |
Black God, White Devil (Template:Lang-pt; literally, God and the Devil in the Land of the Sun) is a 1964 Brazilian film directed and written by Glauber Rocha. The film stars Othon Bastos, Maurício do Valle, Yoná Magalhães, and Geraldo Del Rey. It belongs to the Cinema Novo movement, addressing the socio-political problems of 1960s Brazil. The film was released on DVD in North America for the first time by Koch-Lorber Films.
Plot
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The film starts in the 1940s, during another drought in the sertão, when ranch hand Manuel (Geraldo Del Rey) is fed up with his situation. His boss tries to cheat him of his earnings and Manuel kills him, fleeing with his wife, Rosa (Yoná Magalhães). Now an outlaw, Manuel joins up with a self-proclaimed saint who condones violence (at one point slaughtering a baby) and preaches disturbing doctrines. It is now Rosa who turns to killing and the two are on the move once again. And so it goes, the two running from one allegiance to another, following the words of others as they attempt to find a place in their ruthless land. Blending mysticism, religion, and popular culture in this symbolic and realistic drama, Rocha insists that rather than follow the external and obscure dogmas of culture and religion, man must determine his path by his own voice.
Cast
- Geraldo Del Rey as Manuel
- Yoná Magalhães as Rosa
- Othon Bastos as Corisco
- Maurício do Valle as Antonio das Mortes
- Lidio Silva as Sebastião
- Sonia Dos Humildes as Dadá
- João Gama as Priest
- Antônio Pinto as Colonel
- Milton Rosa as Moraes (as Milton Roda)
- Roque Santos as (as Roque)
Production
This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (August 2015) |
Glauber Rocha was 25 years old when he wrote and began to direct the film.
Its filming took place on Monte Santo and Canudos, Bahia lasting from June 18, 1963 to September 2, 1963.[1][2]
In the scene where we see Manuel (Geraldo Del Rey) carrying a huge stone over his head while climbing Monte Santo on his knees, Del Rey insisted on carrying a real stone that weighted over 20 kilos - something that worried Rocha. After the shooting, Del Rey had to take 2 days off, due to fatigue.[citation needed]
During the dubbing of the sound, Othon Bastos performed three voices. Besides dubbing himself as Corisco, he performed the voice for Lampião (whom Corisco had "incorporated") and also dubbed Sebastião, the black God, even though Lídio Silva played the character on screen.[citation needed]
Reception
Critical reception
This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (November 2016) |
Film review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes reported an approval rating of 100%, based on 12 reviews, with a rating average of 8.5/10.[3]
A. H. Weiler from The New York Times praised the film, calling it "Simple, black-and-white, more arresting as a shocking polemic than as memorable drama."[4] Ted Shen from The Chicago Reader wrote, "The fusion of European and Afro-Brazilian elements--dialogue, exquisite black-and-white images, and music by Villa-Lobos--is startlingly original and poetical in conveying the hope and despair of the oppressed."[5] Time Out Magazine praised the film's style as being "somewhere between folk ballad and contemporary myth, since the references to Brazilian history and culture are pervasive and fairly opaque to the uninitiated".[6]
Awards
The film was nominated for the Palme d'Or at the 1964 Cannes Film Festival, but failed to win.[7] It was also selected as the Brazilian entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 37th Academy Awards, but was not accepted as a nominee.[8] In 2015 it was voted number 2 on the Abraccine Top 100 Brazilian films list.[citation needed]
See also
- List of submissions to the 37th Academy Awards for Best Foreign Language Film
- List of Brazilian submissions for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film
References
- ^ a b "Deus e o Diabo na Terra do Sol" (in Portuguese). Cinemateca Brasileira. Retrieved March 11, 2014.
- ^ Ramos, Fernão; Miranda, Luiz Felipe (2000). Enciclopédia do cinema brasileiro. Senac. p. 351. ISBN 9788573590937.
- ^ "Black God, White Devil (Deus e o Diabo na Terra do Sol) (1964) - Rotten Tomatoes". Rotten Tomatoes.com. Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 14 November 2016.
- ^ Weiler, A. "Black God, White Devil,' From Brazil - The New York Times". New York Times.com. A. H. Weiler. Retrieved 9 October 2018.
- ^ Shen, Ted. "Black God, White Devil". Chicago Reader.com. Ted Shen. Retrieved 9 October 2018.
- ^ "Black God, White Devil, directed by Glauber Rocha". Time Out.com. TR. Retrieved 9 October 2018.
- ^ "Festival de Cannes: Black God, White Devil". festival-cannes.com. Retrieved 2009-02-28.
- ^ Margaret Herrick Library, Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences