The Age of the Earth (1980) Characters, Setting & Themes Explained

Release, runtime and language

1980 · 148 mins · Portuguese

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Starring

Norma Bengell, Tarcísio Meira, Antônio Pitanga, Glauber Rocha, Jece Valadão, Alexandre Ribondi

Inspired by a poem of Castro Alves, the film portrays Brazil’s turbulent political, cultural and intellectual atmosphere of the late 1970s. It follows four striking figures who each embody Christ—a black man, a soldier, an Indigenous person and a guerrilla fighter. Together they become rebels in the tupiniquim lands, confronting the rapacious, “civilizing” cruelty of John Brahms, a ruthless foreign exploiter.