The Melbourne Cinémathèque & ACMI present
A Rainha Diaba
When
Wed 1 Nov 2023
Inspired by the life of Rio de Janeiro criminal João Francisco dos Santos – who also served as the basis for 2002’s Madame Satã – Fontoura’s ground-breaking depiction of the cross-dressing, gay drug queenpin is unashamedly excessive, embracing a camp, transgressive aesthetic entirely at odds with the military dictatorship then ruling Brazil. Selected for Directors’ Fortnight at Cannes but mostly unseen since, the film’s triumphant 4K restoration screened at the Sao Paulo Film Festival in 2022. Stars Milton Gonçalves and features a wonderful score by Guilherme Magalhães Vaz.
Also screening on Wed 01 November
Program
Now! Crime, politics and revolution in 1960s Brazilian cinema
Assault on the Pay Train (1962) – Wed 18 Oct, 7pm
Tocaia no Asfalto (1962) – Wed 18 Oct, 9pm
Antes, o Verão (1968) – Wed 25 Oct, 7pm
The Red Light Bandit (1968) – Wed 25 Oct, 8.35pm
A Rainha Diaba (1974) –Wed 1 Nov, 7pm
Macunaíma (1969) – 9.05pm
About the program
The 1960s was a time of great upheaval in Brazil, as it was the world over. During this rich cultural period cinema went through a moment of radical flux, as did music and the other visual arts. Shadowed by a decade of repressive dictatorship, censorship decrees, and an exodus of dissidents, many of the films produced experimented with narrative, design, collage and music...
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About Melbourne Cinémathèque
Australia's longest-running film society, Melbourne Cinémathèque screens significant works of international cinema in the medium they were created, the way they would have originally screened.
Melbourne Cinémathèque is self-administered, volunteer-run, not-for-profit and membership-driven.
