Film Analysis: Embrace Of The Serpent

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Cinema Du Parc is a reportery theatre that showcases independent films, whether it be arthouse or international cinema. It is located on Parc Avenue in Downtown Montreal, specifically inside a plaza filled with institutions such as cofee shops, grocery and clothing stores... Embrace of the Serpent (Ciro Guerra, 2015), follows Karamakate, an Amazonian shaman, and his encounters with two scientists, German Theodor Koch-Grunberg and American Richard Evans Schultes, as they search for the sacred yakruna plant. The film is loosely inspired by the diaries written by the two scientists during their field work in the Amazon and, more specifically, analyses certain consequences regarding the rubber boom era in Colombia. In terms of the film' social …show more content…

The film’s performances are masterful and effectively convey the idiosyncrasies of indigenous culture. Karamakate, expertly played by Nilbio Torres, demonstrates the struggle of a man rooted in his native culture while having to deal with rubber producers, who wish to erase what is most important to Karamakate. Periodically, Torres shows a increased acceptance and trust that develops between local communities as they get along for a certain time. Yauenkü Migu, who plays Manduca, a river guide, is also a native man who attempts to co-exist with the ever so present western culture in order to assist his people in securing a better life but faces the criticism of being a "sellout." Migu convincingly conveys the internal struggle of this character and the emotional burden he carries. "Embrace of the Serpent", however, is a spiritual story above a cultural one, that includes many symbolic elements that give off various meanings. The natives' harmonious relantionship with nature showcases symbolism is present in their everyday lives. Additionally Embrace of the Serpent is effective when reaching for religious themes. An encounter with a disfigured native who grovels for his …show more content…

When the younger Karamakate encounters a group of native orphans at a Spanish mission, he admonishes them to "Never forget who you are and where you came from." The fact that he has done so himself is not lost on the viewer, and the older Karamakate’s journey becomes one of self-preservation through remembrance. This conflicting content is intensified by Guerra’s decision to shoot the film entirely in black and white, with the exeption of one particular scene in the film's conclusion. The filiming in black-and-white offers a certain authenticity that allows an image to appear more timeless. With a film in this particular setting, one might dissagree with the filmmaker's choice of not taking advantage of the vivid colors of the jungle, however the director's primary concern does clearly not ride on the film's visuals so much so as the film's content which focuses on conflicting tenses, -namely past and present, regarding constant survival. Without color, the Amazon also appears more foreign to us,, providing audience's a sense of mystery. Historically, Guerra offers elegant shots of the setting's landscape while not

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