Zé do Caixão [ˈzÉ› du kaj.ËˆÊƒÉ ÌƒÃµ], known in English-speaking
countries as Coffin Joe, is a character created and nominally played
by Brazilian writer, director, and actor José Mojica Marins. An
amoral undertaker with Nietzschian beliefs, he is driven by his desire
to have a son by "the perfect woman", believing that immortality is
achieved through procreation, a concept he refers to as "the
continuation of blood". He often resorts to murder, kidnapping, and
rape to achieve his means, with his violent nature, atheism, and
antagonism towards Christianity placing him into conflict with his
largely Catholic neighbors. Despite his own disbelief in the
supernatural, he often finds himself experiencing paranormal
phenomena, including encounters with ghosts, Death, and visions of
Hell.Initially conceived of by Marins to serve as the antagonist in At
Midnight I'll Take Your Soul, Brazil's first horror film, Coffin Joe
has gone on to appear in nine more films, three television series,
songs, music videos, and comic books. The character has been called
"Brazil's National Boogeyman", and is considered a horror icon and a
cultural icon of Brazil, with his popularity resulting in descriptions
of him as being the Brazilian equivalent of the United States' Freddy
Krueger.Coffin Joe is an undertaker by trade and runs his own funeral
home, from which he also sells caskets, flowers, and wreaths. Unlike
his neighbors, who dress largely in peasant or farming clothes, he
wears a black top hat, black suit, and black cape; his most
distinctive features are his thick beard and grotesquely long, curled
fingernails. He is an amoral character who considers himself superior
to others and exploits them to suit his purposes. He believes in
reason and materialism, eschewing all religion and superstition,
believing them to be impediments to human evolution; he looks down on
anyone who does not hold his beliefs as inferior and exploitable,
especially his Catholic neighbors. Conversely, he accepts others who
share his beliefs as "superior", particularly women. The only
individuals Joe considers to be pure are children, whom he believes
have yet to be corrupted by the false moral codes of the adult world
and towards whom he shows uncharacteristic displays of kindness.
countries as Coffin Joe, is a character created and nominally played
by Brazilian writer, director, and actor José Mojica Marins. An
amoral undertaker with Nietzschian beliefs, he is driven by his desire
to have a son by "the perfect woman", believing that immortality is
achieved through procreation, a concept he refers to as "the
continuation of blood". He often resorts to murder, kidnapping, and
rape to achieve his means, with his violent nature, atheism, and
antagonism towards Christianity placing him into conflict with his
largely Catholic neighbors. Despite his own disbelief in the
supernatural, he often finds himself experiencing paranormal
phenomena, including encounters with ghosts, Death, and visions of
Hell.Initially conceived of by Marins to serve as the antagonist in At
Midnight I'll Take Your Soul, Brazil's first horror film, Coffin Joe
has gone on to appear in nine more films, three television series,
songs, music videos, and comic books. The character has been called
"Brazil's National Boogeyman", and is considered a horror icon and a
cultural icon of Brazil, with his popularity resulting in descriptions
of him as being the Brazilian equivalent of the United States' Freddy
Krueger.Coffin Joe is an undertaker by trade and runs his own funeral
home, from which he also sells caskets, flowers, and wreaths. Unlike
his neighbors, who dress largely in peasant or farming clothes, he
wears a black top hat, black suit, and black cape; his most
distinctive features are his thick beard and grotesquely long, curled
fingernails. He is an amoral character who considers himself superior
to others and exploits them to suit his purposes. He believes in
reason and materialism, eschewing all religion and superstition,
believing them to be impediments to human evolution; he looks down on
anyone who does not hold his beliefs as inferior and exploitable,
especially his Catholic neighbors. Conversely, he accepts others who
share his beliefs as "superior", particularly women. The only
individuals Joe considers to be pure are children, whom he believes
have yet to be corrupted by the false moral codes of the adult world
and towards whom he shows uncharacteristic displays of kindness.
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