Art House Film Series: Embrace of the Serpent

Join us each month this summer for a great foreign or independent film you may have missed. Popcorn, candy and beverages will be served.
Join us each month this summer for a great foreign or independent film you may have missed. Popcorn, candy and beverages will be served. Ages 21+ only.

At once blistering and poetic, the ravages of colonialism cast a dark shadow over the South American landscape in this film. Filmed in stunning black-and-white, the film centers on Karamakate, an Amazonian shaman and the last survivor of his people, and the two scientists who, over the course of 40 years, build a friendship with him. The film was inspired by the real-life journals of two explorers (Theodor Koch-Grünberg and Richard Evans Schultes) who traveled through the Colombian Amazon during the last century in search of the sacred and difficult-to-find psychedelic Yakruna plant. 

“A visually mesmerizing exploration of man, nature and the destructive powers of colonialism, Embrace of the Serpent (El abrazo de la serpiente) marks an impressively realized third feature from Colombian writer-director Ciro Guerra, featuring knockout black-and-white cinematography and an array of breathtaking locations.”
Jordan Mintzer, THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER

“Embrace of the Serpent is simply a work of art, and one of the most singular cinematic experiences you could hope to have in Cannes, or anywhere really. It’s an absorbing, even thrilling head trip. It is a Heart-of-Darkness voyage of discovery. It is a lament for all the lost plants and peoples of the world.”
Jessica Kiang,THE PLAYLIST