Movies Similar to Matanga

Words with Gods(2014)

The first of four installments in the groundbreaking Heartbeat of the World anthology film series. Comprised of several short films by some of the world's most exciting directors, Words with Gods follows the theme of religion - specifically as it relates to an individual's relationship with his/her god or gods...or the lack thereof. In Words with Gods, each director recounts a narrative centered around human fragility, as well as environmental and cultural crises involving specific religions with which each has a personal relationship; including early Aboriginal Spirituality, Umbanda, Buddhism, the Abrahamic faiths, Hinduism, and Atheism. An animated sequence by Mexican animator Maribel Martinez is woven through each of the film segments, with each segment narratively connected as a feature-length film.

Encontro das Águas(2017)

This short film follows the journey of Rosane Pires and Iara Viana, during the preparations for their wedding, as well as the civil and religious ceremonies.

My mind wilted into perfection(2025)

Aby, a 17 year old girl, can't move on from her father's death. Trapped in guilt and sorrow, she refuses to let him go. But when vivid nightmares begin to haunt her, she realizes they aren't just dreams; they're visions, triggered by a presence that forces her to confront what she fears the most. In a journey through dreams and memory, Aby must face her grief and learn how to live with it.

The Third Clef(2025)

In a family marked by grief, Clarice is the "Third Clef": the granddaughter trying to follow in the musical footsteps of her late grandmother, Lola. But her dream collides with the resistance of her mother, Verônica, who, consumed by deep depression, sees music as the root of the family's ruin. On the eve of a decisive contest, the tension between the daughter's desire for a future and the mother's pain from the past reaches a breaking point, forcing them to decide whether to live in silence or find a new harmony.

All the Love That Exists in This Life(2026)

Amidst memories, dreams, and sensations, the youngest member of a family affected by cancer recounts stories about the love and longing left behind by his father, his sister, and Cajueiro beach.

Tempo Rubato

What would you do if only after the death of your husband, or your father, or your best friend, you found out that he had loved another man? “Tempo Rubato” is a story about two grieving processes—Ravi’s, who lost his first love to police violence, and Dora and Edu’s, who lost their husband and father, respectively. Tiago, Ravi’s childhood friend, visits his family after the funeral and brings with him two boxes full of videos that Ravi recorded throughout his youth, including a farewell video-letter to his family, in which he confesses the secret he kept his entire life.

Best of Three(2024)

Life is what we don't want it to be.

Lágrimas Holandesas(2025)

Folha virada(2025)

The short film follows the daily lives of Pai Marcos Luciano de Oxalá and Madrinha Catingueira, LGBTQIAPN+ Umbanda leaders in Piauí. The film looks at their experiences inside and outside the terreiros, showing the tensions between gender, sexuality and religiosity. The title refers to the expression "turning the leaf", used to describe a ritual in Afro-Brazilian religious shrines in which people's sexual orientation or gender identity was "turned".

Fora da Caridade Não Há Salvação(2023)

Bargain(2024)

Caetano doesn't know how to finish cycles, he keeps everything and everyone good that has happened in his life in his chest and negotiates even with gods to never forget what has already occupied his mind completely. He lives an eternal Bargain.

Japão

Batchan(2020)

Teachings of an Issei. Advice, spirituality and challenges.

Close Your Eyes(2024)

It's a day of waiting for the young boy Chico and his grandmother Rosa, both for better news from the hospital and for the lunar eclipse.

Ofélia na Praia, versão estendida(2014)

Orun: O Mundo dos Orixás

ENCRUZILHADAS DO SOM(2023)

The documentary adresses the meaning of music and the musical diversity present in Umbanda (a Brazilian religion with afroindigenous roots). With interviews with four umbandistas from Fortaleza - Ceará, Crossroads of the Sound pays reverence to the enchanted dimension where the sounds cross each other to make the spirits dance.

Desagradável(2013)

Some people seem to have come into the world to confuse, annoy, swim against the current, like the guys from Gangrena Gasosa, the first and only Sarava Metal band of the universe. "Desagradável" covers all the 23 years of the band. A special reunion of people that stirred the underground scene of 90's until today. All the legends detailed in a film that will show the most shameful chapters in history of Brazilian Rock. Jello Biafra, Jão and João Gordo, BNegão, Marcelo D2, Anjo Caldas, Dado Villa-Lobos, Rafael Ramos, Fabio from Garage, Marcos Bragatto, Tom Leão, Pedro Só, Adilson Pereira, Larry Antha and the former members (more than 15!) recalls the regrettable moments that Sarava Metal happened in their lives. Archive images, photos and videos to prove, once for all, that "Home Saint makes miracles too".

Exu - Além do Bem e do Mal(2012)

Ecos da Saudade(2025)