Tropicalia review

A feature length documentary exploring the Brazilian artistic movement

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In '60s Brazil, a maverick gang of musicians rebelled against a military dictatorship with ‘Tropicália’, a mix of bossa nova rhythms and US rock.

Sadly, Marcelo Machado’s doc doesn’t do justice to the story, underselling the dramatic arc of experimentation and exile in favour of a slackly structured jam.

There’s a noble ambition to recapture the vibrancy of the music, but the results are just confusing to anybody without a working knowledge of Brazilian history.

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Worse, Machado’s habit of laying clumsy gimmicks over the performances detracts from the soundtrack.

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