Le domaine

*I am not going to make a summary of the movie - I just want to explain how bad this movie is* Heading to my sofa to watch this movie, I wasn't actually expecting this to be a great movie or something like that. Knowing relatively well how bad portuguese cinema is, it was no surprise for me to be extremely disappointed with the final result. It's worth mention that I watched this movie two years after it came out, so I wasn't affected at all by the hype this movie got. I was prepared for this to be a slow movie, with a weak plot, very poor acting and very very very bad sound.

And guess what: I wasn't wrong (about some things). The sound is the worst about this movie. It's really hard to see this movie because the sound is so unpleasant and so poorly recorded. It's a shame because it's not that hard to record with quality these days... I also wasn't wrong about the slowness of this movie, which isn't necessarily a bad thing. Slow cinema is beautiful if you make it so. There are beautiful slow shots in cinema everywhere, however, there's a barrier that separates what's beautiful and what's boring/unpleasant. That's why I don't like Tarkovsky: he pushes it to the extreme and makes these slow shots extremely boring and makes a maniacal use of slow scenes in his movies. That's sort of what happened in this movie. It's too slow and sometimes (actually, most of the cases) it doesn't add anything to the story. Also, a lot of times the actors make long pauses during dialogues, in an attempt to create tension... which fails miserably.

Now, about he plot: I think this is a good story. The idea of a rich and powerful man with an enormous domain it's quite cool. And to dive into all that's going on in that large territory where a man is in control and everybody around him respect him it's also interesting. I really liked the main character of this movie - the owner of the domain (or homestead if you prefer). His name is João Fernandes and he is played by Albano Jerónimo. Let me say... I was surprised by what I saw. It's quite a performance by Albano Jerónimo. He can dive deep into that character feelings and emotions and showed it to us. Also, he is capable of showing us how respectable and imposing João is. This may not be the best way to describe it (I have seen the movie 4 months ago...) because João has his downfalls and not so beautiful features, but he is really a great character. That's probably what the movie has best to offer you - a very good performance by Albano Jerónimo.

However, what is missing in the plot is story itself. It feels that (after 3 long hours) nothing has happened. The whole story could be told in about an hour or so. And the worst thing is that the main plot twist is kinda ridiculous. Not only was obvious and predictable as it was... lame. Idk, it just wasn't a good plot, which left me furious because there's so much stuff and great things about this movie, starting by the main character. If this movie was made in a different direction it could be great. What should be the main intrigue of this movie - the communists trying to take land from the biggest producers such as João and shaking the country - it's just something that goes in the background, which is a shame because it's a very recent event (it happened in the 60s/70s) that means a lot to the people in Portugal.

So, overall, the movie sucks, has a terrible sound and the plot was poorly created and told. A movie with such a great potential that ends being trash. I understand why people are saying this is a good movie. The idea is there, the concept is there, the cinematography is there (I forgot to mention, the movie has a GREAT cinematography. Lighting and the look of the movie is awesome. Great DP!). However, what the movie needs the most - an engaging well told story - is what's missing.

I am sure that if this movie was made in Hollywood it would be nominated for the Oscars. 100% sure that this would be a hit. But we are in Portugal, and what had everything to be a great movie turns out to be disappointing... really disappointing.

It's not an easy mission, but it's worth take a look.

This movie has great setting, amazing photography, production value, and a few good ideas. It also has the insight of not trying to provide too much historical context. Even if you are not Portuguese (which I am) you can easily follow the tropes of dictatorship-to-democracy transition, class relations-struggles, and the typical "protective" macho pose of the main character. The problem is that, despite an interesting premise and loads of potential, there is not much in between, and the plot seems to think its more sophisticated than it is. Everything that seems to matter to the family story is obvious (things that are important, but accessory to this- like political and economical issues- are not), and the viewer is treated as though it isn't, as if there is much explaining to do. Some great movies also have obvious plots, but the craft makes you almost forget about that, which is unfortunately not the case here. This is also because the characters are not as complex as the filmmakers seem to think they are, and the family relations, again, are unsurprising, verging on caricature. The fact that, for some reason, lighting cigarettes/smoking, pouring drinks and looking broodingly into the horizon seem to have been the major acting directions to create all sorts of different tensions does not help (although the lighting is great). You can use those crutches a few times, but when its done all the time it doesn't work. I do not mind excruciatingly slow or long movies, but there is no reason for this film to be either of those things, it might actually benefit from a re-edit.

Portuguese quality in its best. Great actors and plot.

The only good thing about the movie was the photography - great landscapes beautifully filmed. Terrible plot, terrible dialogues. Actors would stop in the middle of a sentence (probably trying to remember what comes next) and they just left it like that, instead of repeating the scene. The topic of the movie could be interesting but it was poorly developed. Smoking all the time, it was ridiculous.

In a country where there is little investment in culture, it is really amazing to see such an amazing portuguese work.

The actrors are impressive, the camera work brilliant and the photography stunning.

There are a lot of smart details that might not be obvious for the mainstream viewer but that I absolutely loved, like the motif of the horse (which decline reflects the familiy one) and that the moonlight in the night sequences always lights the person in power within the scene.

The only downside in my view is that if the viewer is not portuguese, it can have more difficulty understanding the historical context. However, this movie also deals with timeless issues like family, love, freedom and power.