Bald Mountain

Bald Mountain (original title Serra Pelada), directed by Heitor Dhalia, is based on the real Serra Pelada gold mine and the 1980s gold rush, following two friends who travel to the real Amazon region mine in 1978 chasing gold. Dhalia described the real Serra Pelada as the largest gold rush of the modern era, with roughly 100,000 people working the mine. The film was originally planned to shoot in Pará, the state where the real mine is located, but after the Vale mining company and the regional government declined to support the production, filming moved to Paulínia in São Paulo state instead. Made on a budget of 10 million reais, the film opened on October 18, 2013, and won an award at the 2014 Cinema Brazil Grand Prize. Who it's for: anyone curious about a Brazilian drama based on a real gold rush and a real mine that once employed 100,000 people, which ironically couldn't get permission to film in the actual mining region. Who it's not for: viewers wanting a calm, low conflict period piece, since the film focuses on how a mining camp transforms the people in it.