The Trial

Maria Augusta Ramos's 2018 Brazilian documentary follows the 2016 impeachment of President Dilma Rousseff from the side of her defence team. The camera sits in senate sessions, corridors and meeting rooms; there is no commentary and no voice-over, only the process itself. Ramos works as an observational documentarian, which leaves the argument for the viewer to draw: Rousseff was removed over irregularities in budget operations, while many of the figures driving the impeachment were themselves under corruption investigation. The film's limit is plain; because it was shot from inside one camp, the other side's reasoning is not seen at the same range, and the director does not hide this. Who it's for: viewers interested in Brazilian politics and observational documentary method. Who it's not for: anyone expecting a neutral account, or who will find the details of political procedure dull.