Amor de Perdição

Between November and December 1978, Portuguese public TV presented, in six weekly episodes, the original television version of Oliveira’s AMOR DE PERDIÇÃO. In Portugal, the film’s critical reception was very hostile. It was also devastating for its director, who was accused of wantonly producing the most expensive Portuguese film made with public subsidy at a time of serious financial crisis. Oliveira was also criticized for moving away from the naturalistic language mandated by television, undermining the legacy of author Camilo Castelo Branco.
“Amor de Perdição” (1862) is a remarkable novel of literary romanticism. Camilo’s novel has an ultra-romantic, passionate and tragic plot, in which a young couple falls in love against the wishes of their own warring families. Faced with the impossibility of getting married or even staying together, Simão Botelho and Teresa Albuquerque prefer to die.
Oliveira worked on an adaptation that resulted in two versions: a longer version for television and a 16mm version for cinema release. From a formal point-of-view, AMOR DE PERDIÇÃO continues the work started in O ACTO DA PRIMAVERA concerning issues of representation and theatrical dramaturgy. According to Oliveira, theatre is “the synthesis of all the arts”, while cinema is only a “medium to fix the theatre”. (Paulo Cunha)

From the collection of the Cinemateca Portuguese and with support from the Österreichischen Filmmuseum

further screening: Nov 22, 14:00 Filmmuseum