Embrace of the Serpent

An elegiac, clear-eyed consideration of the knowledges swept away by Western global conquest: What responsibility do we have to maintain the legacy of others? It addresses the experiential quality of knowledge: It's one thing to know the Cohiuano rite of passage, another to wake from a vivid hallucination on the top of a goddamn mountain & try to get home. An implicit critique of Cartesian dualisms, of the decoupling of signifier & signified, of amodal rather than embodied theories of cognition.

An excellent journey (both concretely and metaphorically) through a breathtaking environment (both corporeal and existential) by a pair and a half of astounding characters (both lovable and despised). And most of all, the use of black and white takes nothing away from the pure color of the jungle. Bonus: no need to change the title when the porn version is (eventually) made.

A beautifully-shot film whose setting and characters give plenty of insight into the cultures and beliefs of the indigenous tribes, as well as colonial history. Ultimately the film is not quite satisfying, narratively, as both white mens' journeys come to somewhat intangible conclusions. The film's overall message feels rather ethereal and cryptic, even if the themes of man vs nature, new vs old, science vs religion are plain to see. Visually stunning but not half as fun as e.g. Apocalypto.

Dead Man for the 21st century??!

Refreshingly understated road-trip, where the road's a river and the trip is both the journey and the goal. It's terrifically well shot, deals with it's themes subtly, and encourages an introspection in the viewer without being preachy. Also the shifts between the two parallel journeys decades apart are seamlessly executed, and cleverly illustrate both the immutability of the natural world and man's steady and destructive encroachment into it.

Delivers on all of its narrative promises, but didn't strike me as profound. Gorgeous black and white cinematography, pronouncing moments with fluidity and grace. The dual narrative reinforces the exploration of duality in its many forms. The revelation that the film is based on true accounts in hindsight makes the film feel like it needs to compare Amazonian cultures to European in order resonate with modern audiences. Context aside, this is an accomplished visceral experience.

It's a meditative serene song that figuratively (and literally) moves past the Heart of Darkness. An intriguing babel of languages and perspectives, a journey to something sacred with explicit references to a medley of great art ranging German expressionist cinema to Josef Conrad. In short, a wonderful, inspiring film.

The film isn't doing its mysticism any favors by being so flat and unmusical, so affectless in its received tale about the white man's destructive legacy.

that movie was actually took me away from my daily problems and anxieties to unknown world. director of this movie can easily be considered as very good at storytelling and emotional transfer. i feel very uncomfortable after the movie in the sense that i have lots of things detracting me from freedom

I let myself go with white man's journey to the wholeness and unity of the universe and it gave me a feeling of greatness if not sublime. In that sense this movie could be far more than what it is, if the visual language and storytelling were also celebrating the multiplicity of nature and Pre-columbian people's ways of life, solely relying on b&w doesn't rescue the style and sometimes it got too didactic and lecture-like. But still it rests with you as a voyage, like "Dead Man" of Jarmusch.

One of the more interesting experiments in postcolonial cinema, though many of its racial politics remain too on-the-nose for me. Can't help but feel I've seen this narrative a thousand times.

Well-made and unpredictable, if often slow.

Shades of Conrad, KOYAANISQATSI, FITZCARRALDO, 2001, a high school history lesson and probably a bit of Viveiros de Castro, this has at least some thematic complexity, but, as it unfolds, it proves to be a case of diminishing returns, even as it challenges and invites the audience to open up pathways to some new cosmological embrace. Despite impressive moments, it seems aesthetically a little bare (admittedly, I was watching this in a low-grade format).

The desire of the white man to understand, control, exploit and ultimately overcome nature is given expression via both the queeste for a plant and the domination of the people revering it, or at least did so before having been corrupted by embracing the serpent. Slights towards regressivism in its biblical, ecological Koyaanisqatsian themes, a nuisance only due the elements conveying that being a bit shoehorned.

This movie is too big for me.

Wow

Outstanding. Perfectly paced, gorgeously shot and extremely immersive tale

Too long, the beautiful cinematography and capable direction make up for it.

Road trip!

fuck. was looking forward to this one.

Cool road movie.

Beautifully shot story about men's journey in search of a sacred plant. On the other hand shows damages done by colonizers in the Amazon Jungle. Shame that it was black and white, color would have added a lot to the visual aspect of the movie.

i happened to watch this gem while reading galeano's espejos. made a good duo. the story without any agitation at all goes so well with the visuals and the moral.

This is in many ways a superb film. It's a beautiful looking film, short in gorgeous black and white, partly as a device for not letting the jungle dominate the film's visuals. Torres and Bolívar, neither of whom are professional actors, are utterly convincing as two versions of the same man. Generally, it's a film that touches on very familiar themes of colonialism and the clash of different cultures, but has a fairly unique approach.

35. İstanbul Film Festivali - Fitaş.

Powerful story, beautiful visuals

What a trip. It's got a mood that pulls you in the first minute, making jungle seem like a jungle even without the verdant green color. Seeing the guide both as a young man as well as an old one was interesting and having the two different timelines happen beside each other worked well for this movie. The pace is not wild, but it keeps things interesting. Creepy Jungle Jesus and the priest included. A lot of visual storytelling happening here. I feel like it will stick with me for a good while.

Viewed May 1, 2017.

"The worst of both worlds" scene in particular was amazing

Trippad film som rör sig I en narkodimma som blandas upp med en dos indianvisdom. Det later förmodligen helt outhärdligt, men filmen är suggestiv och drömliknande på ett sätt som fångar och håller ens uppmärksamhet I over två timmar. Klara Apokalyps-vibbar. Rekommenderas.

-Yeelen-

Ignorant western explorers ditch married life in search of the Amazon's most sacred (read: awesome) hallucinogen, only to lose their sanity and cause the decay of the native culture in the process. 10/10, would ditch again.

Doesn't entirely work, yet it's not often uninteresting. It moves between the two stories with grace, spending plenty of time with each one before moving back to the other, and both show very similar themes and miniature tales. It doesn't feel entirely focused, but the stories it travels through each have something new to offer about imperialism in these tribal communities (before ending on a trippy, hallucinogenic sequence. Cool).

Perhaps best enjoyed after a cup of weapons grade caapi

El abrazo de la serpiente [Embrace of the Serpent] (2015) is the most earthly spiritual film in black & white you'll see from 2015!

A curious film that I suspect could have had a firmer impact if it didn't hesitate to check in with the progressive critics. Otherwise, it's something like Aguirre (or Cabeza de Vaca) by way of Altered States.

1 Juliol 2016 - entretinguda, potser enigmàtica? Però, potser perquè l'hem vist en tres sessions, se m'ha fet poc propera. Ni tansols m'he acabat d'aclarir amb quines preocupacions tenia cada personatge. Els diàlegs semblaven una mica hieràtics, repetitius i canviant abusivament d'idioma. Tot i així, la història és interessant.

Despite the strong post-colonial theme, "Embrace of the Serpent" has a certain grace. I thought the racial politics were overstated two or three times, but elsewhere the script is rich and refined. It also has a genuine fascination with the rainforest and its lore, an unabashed, politically incorrect exoticism, which is what I liked the most.

Fascinating journey to the Karamakate's world, to Amazon and to the missing people of Amazon. Thanks to the story and great editing, we see the greed, selfishness and hostility of white people but what I especially love in this movie was every scene was shot poetically beautiful.

A