History may not repeat itself, but it does rhyme.

Embrace of the Serpent tells the story of two pilgrims’ journey down the Amazon River and into the Columbian jungle. The story is told twice, first in 1909 and then in 1940, and in both instances, the pilgrim is looking for a rare and exotic plant that only one guide is capable of finding.

The first exhibition—based loosely on the diaries of the scientist who undertook this endeavor—finds Theo (Jan Bijvoet), a young, Dutch scientist and Karamakate (Nilbio Torres) as his Virgil. Theo is looking for a special plant, one that will cure his disease, and recruits Karamakate to help him locate it. Karamakate is the last of his tribe, and as they venture deeper into the jungle, we see why. Karamakate crosses paths with several other natives, some of who have adopted the white man’s ways, the white man’s dress, and the white man’s religion. All the while taking the white man’s money. Some even seem to let the invaders take what they will without a fight. Karamakate is the last of his tribe, a proud man, and looks upon these sellouts with the same disgust that he looks at those who did the buying.

On the second trip, 30 years later, Karamakate (now played by Antonio Bolívar) is older and wiser, but while he still harbors resentment, he contains the wisdom of a life lived. His passenger (Brionne Davis) is an American explorer who wishes to take his trip down the river, the same as Theo before him, looking for the same plant and receiving the same results.

Director Ciro Guerra films his adventure in dreamy black and white, capturing the beauty and stark hostility of the land that this shaman inhabits. An adventure into the heart of darkness that is as prophetic as it is hallucinatory.

Embrace of the Serpent (2015)
Directed by: Ciro Guerra
Written by: Ciro Guerra & Jacques Toulemonde Vidal
Based on the dairies of Theodor Koch-Grunberg & Richard Evans Schultes
Produced by: Cristina Gallego
Starring: Nilbio Torres, Antonio Bolivar, Jan Bijvoet, Brionne Davis
Oscilloscope Laboratories, Not Rated, Running time 125 minutes, Opens March 11, 2016

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