Vale Abraão (1993)

User Rating:

7.3/10   

Director:

Manoel de Oliveira

Writers:

Agustina Bessa-Luís (novel)
Manoel de Oliveira (adaptation)

Release Date:

1 September 1993 (France)

Genre:

Drama

Plot:

Ema is a very attractive but innocent girl, so pretty that cars crash in her presence. Young marries Dr...

Plot Keywords:

Based On Novel

Awards:

2 wins

Cast

Leonor Silveira	...	Ema Cardeano Paiva
Cécile Sanz de Alba	...	Ema (young)
Luís Miguel Cintra	...	Carlo Paiva
Ruy de Carvalho	...	Paulino Cardeano
Luís Lima Barreto	...	Pedro Luminares
Micheline Larpin	...	Simona
Diogo Dória	...	Fernando Osorio
José Pinto	...	Caires
Filipe Cochofel	...	Fortunato
João Perry	...	Pedro Dossem
Glória de Matos	...	Maria do Loreto
António Reis	...	Semblano
Isabel Ruth	...	Ritinha
Dina Treno	...	Branca
Dalila Carmo	...	Marina (as Dalila Carmo e Sousa)

Also Known As:

Abraham Valley (International: English title)
Abraham's Valley (International: English title)
Val Abraham (France)
Valley of Abraham (USA) (festival title)

Runtime:

187 min | Portugal:203 min (director's cut)

Country:

France | Portugal | Switzerland

Language:

Portuguese

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Portugal:M/12 | Spain:13 | Sweden:7 | UK:PG

Filming Locations:

Peso da Regua, Portugal

Company:

Madragoa Filmes

Soundtrack:

Clair de Lune (Mondnacht)

The masterpiece of Portuguese cinema

"Abraham's Valley" may be the most extraordinary achievement for Portuguese cinema, and puts Manoel de Oliveira on a level with the world's greatest directors who were equally able to create an unmistakably personal style on their exploration of the human condition. I agree with the first commentator that one cannot speak of an adaptation of Flaubert's novel, but it should also be pointed out that de Oliveira – maybe comparable to Robert Bresson's film versions of Dostoyevsky – conveys the theme into his very own perception of the world, and leaves behind the source in his search for the profound depths of it to create something likewise outstanding, like only a true genius can. The rigid and formal aestheticism which de Oliveira had been developing in more than 60 years as a filmmaker transcends into a perfect composition, which owns a lot to the original marvel of static shots in early silent cinema and the eclectic rigours of Dreyer and Straub/Huillet, so that the few times the camera actually moves it creates an amazing effect on the viewer. The antique decoration as well as spellbinding landscapes of the Portuguese valley reshape the baroque feeling of "Abraham's Valley", a film which is guided by an omniscient voice over but nonetheless always centering around the stunning beauty of main actress Leonor Silveira. Alongside Béla Tarr's "Sátántangó" and Edward Yang's "A Brighter Summer Day" this might be the greatest masterpiece of the 90s, but since the critical world still doesn't seem to be willing to give credit to Portuguese films which doesn't star international actors one might just be lucky to catch this film during a retrospective in some hidden cinematheque.