Memórias do cárcere (Memoirs of Prison). 1984. Brazil. Directed by Nelson Pereira dos Santos. In Portuguese; English subtitles. 185 min.
With Carlos Vereza, Glória Pires, Nildo Parente. An adaptation of Graciliano Ramos’s posthumously published prison memoirs, the film was described by critic J. Hoberman as “a national epic in chains.” Like many other Brazilian leftists of the period, Ramos was incarcerated during the Getúlio Vargas regime in the 1930s for being a suspected communist. The movie charts his journey through the penal system, keenly observing his relationships with both fellow inmates and guards. Though Pereira had wanted to make the film since the 1960s, the political climate of the era made it impossible. Twenty years later, he produced this, one of his most ambitious works and an acute study of power relations. 35mm.