Acting
End of the 20th century. A group of scientists executes a project aiming to prevent a nuclear war with the planet Khalom. From their experimental project, involving manipulating events in the past, two mysterious human creatures travel between the present and the 19th century, and back - getting in love with four different persons.
José and Maria, a young, devout couple in a remote Portuguese fishing village, take a vow of chastity on their wedding night to honor a religious pact. Their commitment is pushed to the breaking point when they rescue a mysterious, wounded stranger and bring him into their home. As the outsider’s presence ignites repressed desires and jealousy, the couple's sacred promise leads to a violent confrontation with the local community's superstitions.
Gothic film in a monastery, where sensual monks murder the children they receive, with images of fantastic, painted from the author own painting and also from the Hammer films and the Saxon plastic tradition of romanticism.
This is an intriguing avant-garde look at what motivates the leisurely classes in Portugal, for better or worse, by director Manoel de Oliveira. Set in a spacious country home peopled with a wide-ranging cast of characters, the drama begins as the friends of a widow come to console her on the loss of her husband. But at one point, the widow goes upstairs, encounters her husband, and is faced with his accusations about the past. This event and others provide the means of revealing the petty, self-serving, egocentric, and romantic pursuits of the melange of people in the house. - Eleanor Mannikka, Rovi
Irene is an agent for an insurance company. She is given the job of investigating the disappearance of an elderly librarian in a provincial town. During her investigations she meets a history teacher - Ricardo - who knew the librarian and is interested in local legends. Irene happens to hear about a very old medieval castle which, according to legend, has a secret entrance that opens mysteriously on Christmas night as the clock strikes twelve.
Trafaria changes his business to Angola, in search of a more profitable occupation, by shaming the pioneers. There he engages in the obscure social and political environment, from which emerge some characteristic figures - administrators, their wives and secretaries, Arabs, police officers, priests and mercenaries...
