The 1970s, Brazil. As corpses are left for the dogs at petrol stations and the people of Recife head to carnival, academic Marcelo is living through the most intense days of his life. Yearning for comfort after his wife\u2019s passing, he is suddenly pursued by opportunists of the regime \u2013 the police, a leg bitten off by a shark, and people entangled in a government-level conspiracy. In the midst of it all is his stepson, capybaras, a textbook landlady with a husky Marlboro voice, and violent \u2013 just not particularly agile \u2013 henchmen. It\u2019s more unbelievable than anything we know \u2013 and yet, in a way, it\u2019s all true.<\/p>\n
Elegant fusion of political thriller and slapstick. Brazilian master Mendon\u00e7a Filho \u2013 also a film critic and curator \u2013 is one of the last cinephiles still working with a camera, creating visually audacious, convention-breaking films wrapped in stylistic bravado. In his latest piece that recently triumphed in the main competition at Cannes, winning two awards (one for Best Director, the other for Best Actor), the centre stage belongs to Brazil\u2019s collective memory, archives, and generational trauma under authoritarian regimes, alongside the love Mendon\u00e7a Filho has for Pink Panther<\/i> and Jaws<\/i> sagas \u2013 all amplified by a meticulously crafted soundtrack. 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