Biography of one of the legendary names in the Samba genre of Brazilian music. Although he could hardly dance or play an instrument, he became one of the main composers of Portela, an important Samba "school" in Rio de Janeiro.
Man of Corn
Quilombo dos Palmares was a real-life democratic society, created in Brazil in the 17th century. This incredibly elaborate (and surprisingly little-known) film traces the origins of Quilombo, which began as a community of freed slaves. The colony becomes a safe harbor for other outcasts of the world, including Indians and Jews. Ganga Zumba (Toni Tornado) becomes president of Quilombo, the first freely elected leader in the Western Hemisphere. Naturally, the ruling Portuguese want to subjugate Zumba and his followers, but the Quilombians are ready for their would-be oppressors. The end of this Brave New World is not pleasant, but the followers of Zumba and his ideals take to the hills, where they honor his memory to this day. Writer/director Carlos Diegues takes every available opportunity to compare the rise and fall of Quilombo with the state of affairs in modern-day Brazil.
A public relations man is invited to guide an American millionaire during his stay in Rio de Janeiro. He gets involved in the most bizarre situations, from orgiastic mega-parties to confrontations with the police, meetings with drug dealers and movie stars, facing corruption and even murder.
The son of a millionaire who owns gold mines in Transopia, Africa, Antoine Leblanc, who lives in a mansion in Rio, one day receives a letter from his father asking him for help against the gold smugglers from Transopia to Brazil.
A Deusa Negra is a love story that spans two centuries. In 18th century Yorubaland, Prince Oluyole is taken prisoner in the course of internecine warfare fanned by overseas slave traders. He is sold into slavery in Brazil. In present day Nigeria, at his father's deathbed, the young Babatunde promises to go to Brazil and search for traces of their once-enslaved ancestors. Beginning with a Candomblé ritual, his journey takes him ever deeper into this culture and, in a dream-like sequence, affords him a deeper understanding of his ancestors' suffering and powers of resistance. Balogun effortlessly links present with past, real with magical worlds and discourse with trance. The hypnotic atmosphere is also heightened by the music of the Nigerian drummer Remi Kabaka, which plays with repetitive patterns and distortions.
Young robber, son of a prostitute who had killed herself, gets involved with two police informers, who force him to share the loot he gets.
Obá
Dentinho
Rio's criminal underworld is run by an unexpected boss: a femme Queen with a taste for power and violence. But heavy lies the crown: what Queen can trust her subjects, however fabulous? When she sets up a stoolie to take the fall for her boy, a plot against Her Majesty arises!
Having come out recently from jail, a tramp, willing to make quick money, decides to organize a pool match between two famous retired players.
