Vitalina Varela

It was in CAVALO DINHEIRO (2014) that we first met Vitalina Varela, a 55-year-old woman from Cape Verde. At that time, we didn’t know much about her character but after five years, the master Portuguese filmmaker Pedro Costa is finally back and with a new film fully dedicated to her, VITALINA VARELA (2019). On screen, in the sumptuous darkness of the night, men and women walk together in a procession between life and death with crosses and saints over their heads. Suddenly, we meet again the haunted-heroine who gives name to the title. She has arrived late to her husband’s funeral in the outskirts of Lisbon. She has been waiting for her plane ticket for more than 25 years.
In his films, Pedro Costa has continually returned to immigrant communities in Portugal and now, without her deseased husband Joaquim and after retreating into isolation, Vitalina must start a new life there. VITALINA VARELA is a film of unique beauty in cinema. It feels like a message from another time. A heartbreaking story illuminated by a truly remarkable performance of its star. (Gustavo Beck)

In the presence of Pedro Costa.