Based on events in the life of late poet Al Berto, Alves do Ó’s movie is “a
generational film, centred on the post-1974 revolution”
The film takes us
back to 1975, when the winds of change were blowing over post-revolutionary
Portugal. Al Berto returns to his small village, Sines, after several years in
Brussels, where he was trained as a painter. Now, he is a wannabe poet who will
soon bewitch some of Sines’ youngsters, just as he will incur the wrath of the
most conservative locals. Settling illegally in a mansion that had been
expropriated from his family during the revolution, young Al Berto begins to
hang out with locals who share his interest in the arts and dream of a
different life. Among them is João Maria, who will soon become Al Berto’s
lover. He was, in real life, the director’s older half-brother. Together, Al
Berto and João Maria will go on to provide Sines with its well-deserved trendy
scene, its movida,
which included the opening of a bookshop downtown, and some extravagant parties
at the old mansion.
Al Berto was ready for Sines, but Sines wasn’t ready for Al Berto. In
the film, Alves do Ó’s goal is to depict a clash of mentalities in an attempt
to capture the spirit of a time in turmoil. The open relationship between the
two men and their entourage, in stark contrast with the town’s narrow-minded
attitude, will lead to several conflicts and will ultimately cause the group to
separate. Liberty was there for the taking, but people had not been taught to
be free and were not sure exactly what to do with it.
Al Berto is portrayed as a confident young man who is fearless and
joyful in equal measure.
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