Fiction

ANDRÉ VALENTE

Catarina Ruivo
P, FRA 2004
71 min
V'04

André, aged eight, has his world overturned one Christmas night. Whilst he is asleep, his father leaves home for the second time, without any apparent reason or explanation. Then his best friend Susanna, with whom he has a warm and tender relationship, moves to a distant part of town. And if that wasnt enough, his schoolmates are always making fun of him and his mother has become infatuated with one of her colleagues, which the young boy cannot come to terms with. This is when Nikolai, a neighbour of Russian origin, appears, with an aura of mystery about him which piques Andrés curiosity, leading him to follow the man. Nikolai goes regularly to the skating rink to get away from his sad and oppressive daily routine. André hides in the shadows of the rinks terraces to observe him as he skates alone on the ice. Dealing with the subject of difficult childhood without descending into pathos or sentimentality is no easy task, but Catarina Ruivos approach is very unobtrusive, and results in a subtle and sensitive film.

Credits
  • Leonardo Viveiros - André
  • Rita Durão - Mutter
  • Dimitri Bogomolov - Nicolai
  • Pedro Lacerda - Vater
  • Ricardo Aibéo - Victor
  • Camilla Bessa - Susana
  • Catarina Ruivo
  • Rui Poças
  • Vasco Pimentel
  • Catarina Ruivo
  • Paulo Pimentel
  • Catarino Amaro
  • Silvia Siopa
Clap Filmes Rua da palmeira N°6 1200-313 Lissabon, Portugal T 1 213 253 800 geral.madragoa@madragoafilmes.com

Gemini Films 34 bvd. Sebastopol 75004 Paris, Frankreich T 1 44 54 17 17 gemini@easynet.fr

35 mm
col
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