Wanted for killing his boss, Manuel flees with his wife Rosa to the sertão, the barren landscape of Northern Brazil. Thrust into a primordial violent region, Manuel and Rosa come under the influence of a series of frightening figures. Sebastiao, a fanatic preacher who promises utopia but practices massacre and a band of bandits called Cangaceiros led by Corisco. Shuttled between the “Black God” and “White Devil”, Manuel and Rosa’s struggle for survival escalates when Church authorities hire a hitman named Antonio das Mortes to hunt down every combatant in the region. 

In addition to writing and directing the film, Rocha wrote the folk songs scored by Heitor Villa-Lobos and Sergio Ricardo. Black God White Devil became the banner film of Brazil’s Cinema Novo movement. Its artistic achievement, acknowledged by Luis Buñuel and Bernardo Bertolucci, has made it a seminal classic of film history.

"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" - Chicago Reader

Cast & Credits: Geraldo Del Rey / Yona Magalhaes / Othon Bastos / Mauricio do Valle / Lidio Silva / Sonia Dos Humildes / Joao Gama / Antonio Pinto / Milton Rosa / Roque Santos / Directed: Glauber Rocha

Awards: Cannes Film Festival (1964): Nominated Palme d’Or

Technical: 1964 / 118 minutes / Portuguese with English subtitles / Mono audio / 1.33 : 1 Black & White / DVD PAL Multi Region / MRBDVD010 / Licensed from Grupo Novo Cinema e TV on behalf of the Rocha family.