Decolonizing the moving image: the cinema novo as opposition to the cultural imperialism of Hollywood

Abstract

In the sixties, cinematographic trends emerged in Latin America that called themselves “new cinemas”. His intention was to form a contrast to the stylistic-formal and thematic characteristics of the hegemonic cinema of Hollywood. Among this artistic-revolutionary movement, one of the highlights was the Brazilian cinema novo. The Bahian director Glauber Rocha was an important representative of it. From his manifestos on the "aesthetics of hunger" and his film production, it is possible to observe that his objective was to generate an awareness of Latin American subalternity with the ultimate goal of achieving the decolonization of the cultural sphere. Here, the anti-colonialist discourse and images of two of his most emblematic films are analyzed: Deus e o diabo na terra do sol (1964) and O Dragão da Maldade contra o Santo Guerreiro (1969). From an aesthetic similar to the Hollywood western, Rocha demonstrates the violence to which subalternized people are subjected – as a metaphor for Latin American identity. For this, he emphasizes general issues such as the imposition of the State, ecclesiastical and landowner power as well as local aspects associated with Brazilian sertão folklore, the figure of the cangaceiro and religious syncretism. The objective is to understand the way in which the emblematic director builds an anti-imperialist discourse that opposes American, Soviet and European cinematography, while seeking to make visible the subordinate reality of Latin America.