queimada (burn) 1969 p1 of 9

A Caribbean island in the mid-1800's. Nature has made it a paradise; man has made it a hell. Slaves on vast Portuguese sugar plantations are ready to turn their misery into rebellion - and the British are ready to provide the spark. They send agent William Walker (Marlon Brando) on a devious three-part mission: trick the slaves into revolt, grab the sugar trade for England...then return the slaves to servitude. Gillo Pontecorvo, the acclaimed director of The Battle of Algiers, explores colonialism and insurrection in the searing epic Burn!. Both visually and narratively stunning, Burn! glows with the fires of Pontecorvo's unique filmmaking genius. Genius is also evident in Brando's complex, intelligent portrayal of a man who is both gentleman and scoundrel, revolutionary and colonialist. And Ennio Morricone's (The Untouchables, The Mission) haunting music memorably underscores the almost overwhelmingly powerful story.

Category:

Film & Animation

Tags:

• marlon brando
• nineteenth century
• carribean slave revolt

[rexrex118]

@Loumademe Great Film and I bought it on dvd in 2009, Its a good Companion Piece to The Mission.

[Loumademe]

I first saw this in a sociology class at Rutgers, believe it or not. And it remains one of the strongest memories of those days. It's also a good Pontecorvo film with poignant performances from Marlon Brando and Evaristo Márquez. Thanks for sharing it.