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One of the high points of Brazil's subversive Cinema Novo movement, Joaquim Pedro de Andrade's Macunaíma (1969) is an anarchic comedy that mixes ancient myths, racial burlesque, and urban guerillas into a hallucinatory masterpiece. Adapted from the classic 1928 modernist novel by Mário de Andrade, the film follows Macunaíma, the "hero with no character," after he emerges as a full-size adult from his mother's belly. Born black, he magically turns white as he wanders aimlessly across the country, tricking his way through traps laid out by witches and giants, while also falling in with a beautiful revolutionary. Thumbing its nose at the authoritarian government then reigning in Brazil, Macunaíma is a vibrant and politically combustible comedy at the cutting edge of the Tropicalist avant-garde. This Kino Classics release also includes two short films and Andrade's subsequent feature, The Conspirators (1972), a historical reconstruction of a failed coup during Brazil's colonial period.
Original Release
09/03/1969
Cast
Name | Character |
---|
Grande Otelo | Black Macunaíma / Macunaíma's son |
Paulo José | White Macunaíma / Macunaíma's mother |
Jardel Filho | Venceslau Pietro Pietra |
Dina Sfat | Ci |
Milton Goncalves | Jiguê |
Rodolfo Arena | Maanape |
Joana Fomm | Sofara |
Maria Do Rosario | Iquiri / Iriqui |
Rafael de Carvalho | Caapora / Caipora |
Nazareth Ohana |
Directors
Writers
Joaquim Pedro De Andrade, Mário de Andrade
Cast
Name | Character |
---|
Grande Otelo | Black Macunaíma / Macunaíma's son |
Paulo José | White Macunaíma / Macunaíma's mother |
Jardel Filho | Venceslau Pietro Pietra |
Dina Sfat | Ci |
Milton Goncalves | Jiguê |
Rodolfo Arena | Maanape |
Joana Fomm | Sofara |
Maria Do Rosario | Iquiri / Iriqui |
Rafael de Carvalho | Caapora / Caipora |
Nazareth Ohana | |
Zezé Macedo | Thin woman |
Wilza Carla | Fat Lady / Fat woman |
Myrian Muniz | Venceslau's wife |
Edy Siqueira | |
Carmem Palhares | |
Maria Clara Pelegrino | Venceslau's maid |
Waldir Onofre | |
Hugo Carvana | Man with the duck / Man with duck |
Maria Letícia | |
Guará Rodrigues | Bum |
Producers
Name | Role |
---|
K.M. Eckstein | Executive Producer |
Joaquim Pedro De Andrade | Producer |