Brazilian films enchant in a way Hollywood or other Asian movies cannot, according to the organizers of this year's Festival Cinema Brazil.
Into its seventh-annual installment, the festival has comedy, documentary and drama, aiming to showcase the unique culture of the country, and to not only entertain, but also "foster cultural exchange and understanding."
Think "Brazil" — as organizers and tourist associations would have you do — and your first images might be musical.
Composer Noel Rosa died at 26 but has a legacy that samba fans still celebrate in his centenary year. In "The Village and People's Poet," experts tell his story and renowned performers introduce his wide-ranging and highly respected music. In pulling together the musicians who competed for the grand prize at the Record Music Festival in 1967, another film, "One Night In '67," documents the "thunderous night which forever changed the route of Brazilian pop music."
Something you may not associate with Brazil, is a temperature as low as in "Coritiba Zero Degrees." An intense winter in the south is the backdrop to the tale, that also dictates the atmosphere, and the peculiar behavior of the four main characters.
Festival Cinema Brazil takes place at Cinema e-ra in Hamamatsu, Shizuoka Pref., from Nov. 12 to 15. Tickets are ¥1,500 (¥1,300 in advance). For more details and a timetable, call (050) 6860-1551 or visit www.2011.cinemabrasil.info.