In the late 19th century, Francisco Manoel da Silva (
Klaus Kinski) is a debauched
Brazilian
rancher who has reluctantly gone to work at a
gold mining company after his ranch is ruined by
drought. When da Silva discovers that he is being financially exploited by the company, he murders his boss as punishment and
goes on the lam to pursue a career as an
outlaw and
bandit, robbing
stagecoaches passing through the desert. Thus, da Silva becomes the notorious Cobra Verde (Green Cobra), the most vicious bandit of the
sertão region. In a visit to town, da Silva encounters and subdues by force of character
an escaping slave, an act that impresses wealthy sugar baron Dom Octávio Coutinho (
José Lewgoy). Dom (Don) Coutinho, unaware that he is dealing with the legendary bandit, hires da Silva to oversee the slaves on his
sugar plantation. When da Silva subsequently impregnates all three of the Dom's daughters, the sugar baron is furious, but the situation becomes even more complicated when he discovers that da Silva is none other than the infamous Cobra Verde. As punishment, rather than kill him or have him prosecuted, Dom Coutinho decides to send da Silva on the impossible mission of re-opening the
slave trade with
Western Africa. The bandit is aware he is likely to be killed in Africa, but accepts anyway. Cobra Verde/da Silva travels by sea to
Dahomey, West Africa (present-day
Benin), where he must negotiate with the fearsome King
Bossa Ahadee of Dahomey (played by His Honour the
Omanhene Nana Agyefi Kwame II of Nsein, a village north of the city of
Axim, Ghana). Amazingly, da Silva succeeds in convincing the King to exchange slaves for new
rifles. He takes over
Elmina Castle and takes Taparica (King Ampaw), sole survivor of the previous expedition, for a partner. They begin operating the slave trade across the
Atlantic Ocean to Brazil. Soon, however, the fickle king has them captured and brought before him. The King accuses da Silva of various crimes that he has no knowledge of, including poisoning the King's
greyhound, and sentences him to death. He and Taparica are rescued the night prior to da Silva's decapitation by the King's nephew, who negotiates a
blood alliance with da Silva, planning to overthrow the King. The ambitious bandit trains an enormous
army of native women (who, after learning to use weapons, at first want to kill all men) and leads them on a raid to successfully overthrow King Bossa. Against all expectations, the slave trade is maintained under the new king, thanks to da Silva's resourcefulness. However, da Silva eventually falls out of favour with the new King, and discovers that in the meantime Brazil has outlawed slavery and seized his assets, and the British have placed a price on his head. Despite the adversity, da Silva is glad that finally a change has come and recognises that slavery has been a crime. The exhausted bandit goes onto the beach at Elmina and desperately tries to pull a ship's boat to water so he can escape. The boat is too heavy for one man's effort; after a strenuous fight to pull from the boat's rope da Silva collapses in the surf as the tide slowly comes in and an African man crippled by
polio walks on all fours toward him along the shore. The story ends with a group of confident young African women laughingly chanting over the end credits. ==Cast==