10 Best Brazilian Movies to Watch

By Vlad Zakh · August 18, 2025

City of God is the film most people mean by Brazilian cinema, but the best work keeps circling the tension between everyday warmth and institutional violence. Pixote is a devastating look at homeless children in the justice system, Carandiru is a doctor’s account of Brazil’s most overcrowded prison, and Neighboring Sounds is a tense look at one street’s anxiety over crime and class. The Second Mother, Aquarius, Bacurau, Central Station, Elite Squad and City of God round out the list.

Pixote (1981)

TMDB ★ 7.7

A devastating, unsentimental look at homeless children cycling through Brazil's justice system.

Directed by Héctor Babenco · 2h 07m · Rated R

Where to watch

Rent or buy: Amazon Video

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

Carandiru (2003)

TMDB ★ 7.4

A doctor's account of Brazil's most overcrowded prison, based on a real 1992 massacre.

Directed by Héctor Babenco · 2h 25m · Rated R

Where to watch

Rent or buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

Neighboring Sounds (2012)

TMDB ★ 7.1

A tense, atmospheric look at one street's creeping anxiety over crime and class.

Directed by Kleber Mendonça Filho · 2h 11m · Rated NR

Where to watch

Rent or buy: Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

The Second Mother (2015)

TMDB ★ 7.4

A live-in housekeeper's daughter arrives and exposes the household's class fault lines.

Directed by Anna Muylaert · 1h 52m

Where to watch

Stream: OVID · Rent or buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

Aquarius (2016)

TMDB ★ 7.3

A widow refuses to sell her apartment to developers, and the standoff turns quietly fierce.

Directed by Kleber Mendonça Filho · 2h 27m · Rated NR

Where to watch

Rent or buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

Bacurau (2019)

TMDB ★ 7.4

A small town under mysterious siege turns genre cinema into sharp political allegory.

Directed by Juliano Dornelles & Kleber Mendonça Filho · 2h 11m

Where to watch

Stream: Kino Film Collection · Rent or buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

Central Station (1998)

TMDB ★ 7.9

A cynical letter-writer and an orphaned boy cross Brazil looking for his father.

Directed by Walter Salles · 1h 51m

Where to watch

Buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

Elite Squad: The Enemy Within (2010)

TMDB ★ 8.1

The sequel widens the lens from street violence to political corruption.

Directed by José Padilha · 1h 55m

Where to watch

Stream: Cinefest Amazon Channel

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

Elite Squad (2007)

TMDB ★ 8.0

A brutal look at Rio's militarised police unit that refuses to make its violence comfortable.

Directed by José Padilha · 1h 55m · Rated R

Where to watch

Stream: Lionsgate+ Amazon Channel, BFI Player Amazon Channel · Rent or buy: Amazon Video, Google Play Movies, YouTube

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

City of God (2002)

IMDb ★ 8.6 RT 91% Metacritic 79

Two boys growing up in a violent Rio de Janeiro slum take drastically different paths in life.

Directed by Fernando Meirelles · 2h 09m · Rated R

Nominated for 4 Oscars76 wins & 50 nominations

Where to watch

Stream: Paramount Plus Essential · Rent: JustWatch TV, Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home · Buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

Streaming availability data from JustWatch, via TMDB. Availability changes often, so check the service before you plan a movie night.

Vlad Zakh

Founder, Movieix

Founder of Movieix. He started the site because most recommendation pages felt like noise. Here, lists are sorted by who's in the film, where it's from and what mood you're in tonight.

10 Best Brazilian Movies to Watch

Pixote (1981)

Carandiru (2003)

Neighboring Sounds (2012)

The Second Mother (2015)

Aquarius (2016)

Bacurau (2019)

Central Station (1998)

Elite Squad: The Enemy Within (2010)

Elite Squad (2007)

City of God (2002)

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