Apocalypse in the Tropics (2024)★ 7.1/10

I watched this film before the announcement of the Oscar shortlists in December 2025. The film had a great publicity and distribution campaign, having premiered at the Venice film festival and acquired by Netflix.
I've heard interviews with the director, Petra Costa, on a variety of documentary-focused podcasts. Some podcasters even invited her several times.
Therefore, the film was high on my watchlist, but as I was watching it (on Netflix), it couldn't excite me.
First of all, the plot of the film felt a bit dated. Bolsonaro is no longer the president, and Lula da Silva is back at the helm of the country.
I did recognize the eerie resemblance between the rise of right-wing politicians and evangelical leaders in both Brazil and the USA, but I still felt a bit detached from it.
I was hoping to learn more about Bolsonaro, but instead the film focuses on far-right televangelist Silas Malafaia, who is always blunt but also somewhat repetitive throughout the almost two-hour film.
In addition, probably for a lack of charismatic protagonists, the filmmaker often repeats visuals of crowds and government buildings in the city of Brasília.
I understand it's a political documentary of great value to Brasil, but it was just not entertaining or inspiring to me.

Não consigo conceber a ideia que algumas pessoas tem de bem nesse tal de Malafaia, tudo de mais condenável exala dele, a começar por toda arrogância e prepotência em sua fala, e isso não é nem a ponta da unha de todo esse mau.