Silvestre (1981)

The daughters of a nobleman give shelter to a stranger. After that visit ends with a severed hand, the pilgrim takes on different identities to seek revenge. The nobleman goes missing and his youngest has to pose as a knight to save him.

Director:

João César Monteiro

Writers:

João César Monteiro (scenario), Maria Velho da Costa (dialogue)

Stars:

Maria de Medeiros, Teresa Madruga, Luís Miguel Cintra

1 win & 1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview:
Maria de Medeiros	...	Sílvia / Silvestre
Teresa Madruga	...	Susana
Luís Miguel Cintra	...	Pilgrim / Knight / D. Raimundo
Jorge Silva Melo	...	D. Paio
João Guedes	...	D. Rodrigo
Xosé Maria Straviz	...	Alferes (lieutenant)
Ruy Furtado	...	Matias
Raquel Maria	...	Marta
Cucha Carvalheiro	...	Elsa
Rogério Vieira	...	Mule-driver
Afonso Vasconcelos	...	Hunchback
Manuela de Freitas	...	(voice)
João Perry	...	(voice)
José Mário Branco	...	(voice)
Hermínio Rebelo	...	(voice)

Storyline

While a nobleman is away to visit and invite the king to his daughter's upcoming wedding, a strange pilgrim knocks on his door for shelter. Said visit ends in a violent confrontation and the pilgrim takes on different identities to seek revenge. Meanwhile the nobleman goes missing and his daughter has to pose as a young knight to save him. Set in medieval times, the movie makes use of theatrical sets, lyrical language and a languid rhythm to give it a unique feeling of a folk tale being transmitted from long ago. The cast is led by the 15-year-old Maria de Medeiros and João César Monteiro's frequent collaborator Luís Miguel Cintra.

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Plot Keywords:

woman dressed as man | pilgrim | knight | based on novel | character name in title | 

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Genres:

Drama

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Details

Country:

Portugal

Language:

Portuguese

Release Date:

6 May 1982 (Portugal)

Also Known As:

Naturalna

Filming Locations:

Tobis Portuguesa, Lumiar, Lisbon, Portugal

Company Credits

Production Co:

V.O. Filmes

Technical Specs

Runtime:

120 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

User Reviews

And it starts!

João César Monteiro was one of the most controversial, exuberant, strange, mad, awarded, blessed, genius, talked about, extraordinary Portuguese movie makers of all time. And maybe one of the best directors in the world. I know it sounds ridiculous at first, but he is a man with an unique view on the world. And even though his late movies can be repetitive ( he was stuck on a character, he was stuck on the image of himself)he has made in his career some inventive and touching films. This is one of those cases. When I was a kid I used to see some movies over and over again. From great classics like Rio Bravo to the blockbusters of the time like Superman. And I saw them time and again, repeating the parts I liked the most. It was so with Silvestre. This is the kind of movie (if you see it with an open mind, it's a theatrical film) that will take you to a wonderful journey of knights and adventures. See it and let the magic carry you.