In the 1950s, Brazilian cinema was dominated by chanchada (musicals, often comedic and "cheap"), big-budget epics that imitated the style of Hollywood, and "'serious' cinema" that Cinema Novo filmmaker Carlos Diegues characterizes as "sometimes cerebral and often ridiculously pretentious."
Na década de 1950 o cinema brasileiro estaba dominado pola chanchada (filmes musicais, con frecuencia cómicos e baratos), historias épicas de grande orzamento que imitaban o estilo de Hollywood e o cinema denominado "serio" que o cineasta Carlos Diegues describe como "ás veces cerebral e a miúdo ridiculamente pretensioso."