+ Besouro The Assailant Brazil 2009. Dir João Daniel Tikhomiroff starring Ailton Carmo, Jéssica Barbosa, Flávio Rocha. 120min. Digital. EST
A biopic of a legendary capoeira fighter-revolutionary from Bahia, Brazil who uses spirituality and martial arts to free his people. Set in the early 1920s, just 40 years after the abolition of slavery, Besouro features fantastic fight scenes (choreographed by the Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon team), set to the traditional rhythm of the berimbau. This is the most requested film in 10 years of African Odysseys.
+ Boy 23 –The Forgotten Boys of Brazil Menino 23: Infâncias Perdidas no Brasil Brazil 2016. Dir Belisario Franca. 80min. Digital. EST
Using a mixture of archival footage and occasional dramatic recreation, this documentary tells the story of the forced slavery of 50 Afro-Brazilian orphans by a prominent family of Nazi sympathisers. Focusing on two elderly survivors, the film eschews melodrama and sensationalism in favour of dispassionate analysis, and is all the more powerful for its restraint.
Tickets: Double-bill are £10 Book: https://whatson.bfi.org.uk/Online/seatSelect.asp
BFI Partnership offer: We are giving away 5 pairs of tickets to this screening: http://bit.ly/2uJ1Dqr
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