Sometime in the 1780s, a low-ranked soldier of the Portuguese crown in Brazil named Joaquim José da Silva Xavier began a gradual process of political awakening. Later known as Tiradentes (“tooth-puller”), a derogatory term that referred to his past as an amateur dentist, he organized a group of citizens in a rebellion called the Inconfidência Mineira against the colonial Portuguese. When the revolt was put down, he was executed, and is now considered a Brazilian national hero. Tiradentes is the subject of a new film, “Joaquim,” by the director Marcelo Gomes. The movie, which ran at this year’s Berlinale, shows the process of Tiradentes’ increasing awareness of the injustice around him in sensual impressions, rather than in a discrete story or through historical facts. The viewer is alone with the protagonist and his existence. At times, music is the characters’ only method of communication.
Unlimited access to our
