The 15 Best Brazilian Movies of All Times

Just as every cinema of a certain nationality has striking characteristics, it could not be different with Brazilian cinema.

Brazilian works conquer like no other, whether in drama, comedy, adventure and so much more. Among thousands of movies it is curious that many people never heard about some of them.

Check out now a selection of the best Brazilian movies ever produced so far:

 Central do Brasil (1998) Drama/Comedy

The movie tells the story of an ex-teacher, Dora, who lives writing letters to illiterate people, dictating what they want to tell their families. Lying, she pockets the money and writes no letters. In the course of the plot, one of her clients dies and leaves her child alone. Dora is reluctant to take care of the boy, but in the end she try to help the kid find his father that he never got to know.

O Auto da Compadecida (2000) Adventure / Comedy

The movie shows the adventures of João Grilo and Chicó. Two poor northeasterns who survive by stealing people. The story gets more exciting when they try to trick the dreaded cangaceiro Severino de Aracaju who pursues them during the plot. The work uses simple audiovisual resources, but it is brilliant about the script and interpretation.

Cidade de Deus (2002) Drama / Thriller

Winner of international awards, Cidade de Deus is a movie set in Rio de Janeiro’s favelas in the 1970s. The main characters have the same precarious living conditions, but follow different ways and philosophies. It is interesting to see the contrast between Buscapé, a favela resident, a photographer, Zé Pequeno, also a favela resident, an ambitious and evil drug dealer, and Bené, also a favela resident and a drug dealer, but he is wiser about some decisions.

Os Normais (2003) Comedy

The plot turns around the characters Rui and Vani who are about to marry with different partners. Both ceremonies are schedule in the same church and there they end up meeting and talking for the first time, starting a series of confusions very far from normal.

Lisbela e o Prisioneiro (2003) Romance / Comedy

A movie full of striking characters, adventures, romance and a lot of confusion. It tells the story of trickster, adventurer and conqueror Leléu and the dreamy young lady Lisbela, who loves watching movies and dreams of movie heroes. The story takes place in Pernambuco and what makes it even more interesting is that Lisbela is engaged and Léleo ends up stealing her heart. Lisbela and Leléu will suffer pressure from the family, the social environment and also with their own doubts and anxieties. But in a final twist, full of courage and humor, fate is kind to them.

Estômago (2007) Drama / Comedy

Hoping for a better life, the movie shows Raimundo Nonato moving to a big city and working as a janitor at a bar. In his work environment he discovered his passion and talent for cooking. Raimundo turns the bar into a success and ends up being hired to work at an Italian restaurant. There, lots of things happen and his life will take other directions.

Saneamento Básico (2007) Comedy

The movie tells the story of residents struggling to get sewage treatment in the small village where they live and find that there is no money to solve the problem. However, the city has almost $ 10,000 to produce a movie. Then comes the idea of using the amount to do a film about the the story of a monster that lives in the construction works of a pit.

Tropa de Elite 1 (2007) Drama / Thriller

Roberto Nascimento or Beto is captain of the special force of the Rio de Janeiro Military Police and tries to recruit two new guys who can succeed him. But he didn’t realize it would be such a difficult task to find someone with character and courage.

Meu nome não é Johnny (2008) Drama /Police Fiction

João Guilherme Estrella is a middle-class young man who becomes the king of drug trafficking in southern Rio de Janeiro. The film shows the clever, father-adored boy being investigated by the police and facing the harsh reality of a criminal.

Verônica (2008) Drama / Action

One teacher faces the difficult reality of robberies, drug dealers and homicides in her daily life. On an normal day at work, she realizes that the parents of one of her students do not come to pick him up, she takes him home and finds that her parents were murdered. Now she needs to protect an eight year old boy.

Tropa de Elite 2 (2010) Drama / Thriller

Winner of the Brazilian Cinema Grand Prize for Best Actor, in the second film Captain Nascimento is more experienced and works as an Under Secretary of Intelligence at the Rio de Janeiro Security Secretariat. In this plot his concern is no longer finding a successor to your position as before. Now he must decide between to do a good job in his area or ignore all the scams of his co-workers around him.

O Homem do Futuro (2011) Fantasy / Comedy

In this movie there is a time travel. Zero is a ridiculed scientist whose latest invention has taken him back to the past, giving him a chance to remake his life. Back in college, he reunites with Helena, his crush, but ends up interfering with future events. Now Zero needs to fix the future without losing Helena again.

Bruna Surfistinha (2011) Drama / Eroticism

The movie tells the story based on real facts that Raquel Pacheco is a young woman from the middle class of São Paulo, who studied in a traditional school in the city. One day she made a surprising decision: she left home and decided to become a prostitute. With the code name “Bruna Surfistinha”, Raquel lived several professional experiences and gained national prominence by telling her sexual and affective adventures in a blog, which later became a book and a best seller.

Que Horas Ela Volta (2015) Drama / Comedy

Pernambuco’s girl, Val moved to São Paulo to offer better living conditions for a daughter, Jessica. Years later, her daughter calls saying she wants to go to the city to take her college entrance exam. Val’s bosses welcome the girl with open arms, but their behavior complicates relationships in the house.

Bacurau (2019) Drama / Fantasy

One of the last films released in Brazil tells the story of the residents of a small village located in the Brazilian interior, called Bacurau, who discovered that the community is no longer on any map. Gradually, they see something strange in the region: as “drones” at the skies, foreigners come to the city for the first time. When cars become victims of gunfire and bodys begin to appear, Teresa, Domingas, Acacio, Plínio, Lunga, and other inhabitants come to the conclusion that they are being attacked or even hunted. Now the mission is to identify the enemy and survive.

hope you like ;)

• movies