Academy Award-nominated documentarian Petra Costa is returning to her native Brazil to seize a common fact: Christian nationalism has change into embedded inside worldwide politics. Costa’s “Apocalypse within the Tropics” poses the query: “When does a democracy finish, and theocracy start?,” because the logline states. “Weaving collectively previous and current, the movie holds a mirror as much as the remainder of the world.”
The doc examines the rises of present Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, former President Jair Bolsonaro, and the nation’s main televangelist Silas Malafaia. Briefly, the movie is billed as being a “cinematic investigation of the fault traces that emerge when faith fuels political ambition.”
“Apocalypse within the Tropics” is written, directed, and produced by Costa, with Alessandra Orofino co-writing and producing. The chief producers are Brad Pitt, Dede Gardner, Jenny Raskin, Jim and Susan Swartz, Geralyn White Dreyfous, Katrina vanden Heuvel, Jeffrey Lurie, Marie Therese Guirgis, Felipe Estefan, Rafael Georges Zein, Jeremy Kleiner, Meadow Fund, Katy Drake Bettner, Kate Hurwitz, InMaat Basis, Frida Polli, James Costa, and Trevor Burgess.
“Apocalypse within the Tropics” premiered on the 2024 Venice Movie Pageant, the place it was acquired by Netflix, and later had its North American premiere at Telluride 2025. The function went on to open the 2025 version of DOC NYC Selects. “Apocalypse within the Tropics” is Costa’s follow-up to “The Fringe of Democracy,” which Netflix additionally distributed.
The IndieWire evaluate for the function cited the parallels between the 2 movies, with critic David Ehrlich writing that “Apocalypse within the Tropics” equally “portrays the chaotic occasions of the previous election cycles with beat-by-beat precision.” The evaluate reads, “All of this turns ‘Apocalypse within the Tropics’ into an usually visceral look ahead to Brazilians and, with the help of Costa’s narration (once more carried out in English, although there are two variations of the movie — the one with Portuguese voiceover premiered at Venice) will nearly actually assist her movie attain, as soon as extra, worldwide consideration.”
Costa not too long ago advised Deadline that “Apocalypse within the Tropics” isn’t nearly Brazil, however could be utilized to any nation, particularly the U.S. “The wedding between this Christian fundamentalism and the far proper is incompatible with democracy as a result of the primary precept of democracy is that it’s important to coexist along with your enemy,” she stated. “Despite the fact that the US is the primary nation to should declare the separation of church and state, it’s additionally the primary to create such a deliberate motion to infuse politics with Christianity and mobilize its followers into these tradition wars that at the moment are having their apex… After I take a look at the historical past of American politics by means of the lens of what I’ve found in making this movie, it’s as if the muse of MAGA and what you’re seeing of Trump’s authorities now’s the ethical majority.”
“Apocalypse within the Tropics” might be launched in choose theaters on Friday, July 11, adopted by a streaming launch on Netflix on Monday, July 14. Try the trailer beneath.