Main content

Skip to main content

Embrace of the Serpent

View on the Pragda STREAM site

A breathtaking ethnographic odyssey through the heart of the Colombian Amazon, Embrace of the Serpent is the epic story of the first contact, approach, betrayal and, eventually, friendship, between Karamakate, an amazonian shaman, last survivor of his people, and two scientists that, over 40 years, become the first men to travel the Northwest Amazon in search of a sacred and difficult-to-find psychedelic Yakruna plant.

With nine different languages spoken during the course of the film, this hypnotic meditation on the beauty of nature and the effects of colonialism is presented with an uncommon sense of curiosity rarely seen. The crisp black and white photography captures the extraordinary landscapes with a haunting, almost mythical sense of wonder, while the balance between documentary-style realism and dreamlike mysticism makes for a truly poetic cinematic experience.

Related Films

Secrets from Putumayo

A documentary about the man widely considered to be the pioneer of international…

Ayahuasca: Expansion of Consciousness

This is a comprehensive view of Ayahuasca use, blending scientific, religious,…

Eternal Amazon

A critical analysis of how the world’s largest tropical rainforest is…