Set to premiere at the Rotterdam Film Festival in the newly-revived Rotterämmerung genre section is Guto Parente’s The Cannibal Club, a brutal and unapologetically scathing satire of Brazil’s ruling classes. Ahead of the festival, the film has been picked up by Berlin-based company M-appeal.
Director Parente recently talked to Variety about his film, which features bloody dismemberment, bold sex scenes and a wealthy, elite couple who kill and eat their employees.
“For me, the film is an investigation into the cynicism of the Brazilian elite and how far they can take it. As well as a reflection on the role men insist on playing in society to prove their virility and maintain their power,” Parente told the site.
Parente also noted that the film does not rely on graphic screen violence, but that he is more interested in the “…violence of speech and thought of those who truly believe they are above everything and everyone because they have money and power.”
Official synopsis:
“Otávio and Gilda are a very wealthy couple of the Brazilian elite who have the habit of eating their employees. Despite some casual disagreements and discussions, the couple gets along well and lives a peaceful and happy life. Until the day Gilda accidentally discovers a secret from Borges, a powerful congressman friend of her husband, what happens to put their life at risk. Under this imminent and invisible threat, Otávio and Gilda will need to count with the help of Jonas, the newly hired employee.”
Words: Kevan Farrow (@KevanX)
