Tabu (2012)

A restless retired woman teams up with her deceased neighbor's maid to seek out a man who has a secret connection to her past life as a farm owner at the foothill of Mount Tabu in Africa.

Director:

Miguel Gomes

Writers:

Miguel Gomes, Mariana Ricardo

Stars:

Telmo Churro, Miguel Gomes, Hortêncílio Aquina

18 wins & 40 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Telmo Churro	...	Intrepid explorer
Miguel Gomes	...	Narrator (voice)
Hortêncílio Aquina	...	Porter (as Hortencílio Aquina)
Américo Mota	...	Porter
Valentim Hortêncílio	...	Porter (as Valentim Hortencílio)
Artur Januário	...	Porter
Mariana Ricardo	...	Explorer's wife / Aurora's friend
Teresa Madruga	...	Pilar
Maya Kosa	...	Polish woman
Isabel Muñoz Cardoso	...	Santa (as Isabel Cardoso)
Laura Soveral	...	Aurora
Vítor Manuel	...	Guide
Cândido Ferreira	...	Painter
Maria José Ricardo	...	Literacy teacher
Joana Cunha Ferreira	...	Pilar's friend

Storyline

A restless retired woman teams up with her deceased neighbor's maid to seek out a man who has a secret connection to her past life as a farm owner at the foothill of Mount Tabu in Africa.

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Plot Keywords:

africa | neighbor | male rear nudity | female pubic hair | pubic hair | 

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Genres:

Drama | Romance

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Country:

Portugal Germany Brazil France Spain

Language:

Portuguese English Polish

Release Date:

5 April 2012 (Portugal)

Also Known As:

Tabou

Filming Locations:

Lisbon, Portugal

Company Credits

Production Co:

O Som e a Fúria, Komplizen Film, Gullane

Technical Specs

Runtime:

118 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The movie that Aurora was said to have participated in, "It will never snow again over Kilimanjaro", is, of course, fictional.

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Goofs

When the children chase the vehicle with Aurora and her baby in it, some of them are wearing t-shirts with brands and slogans from more modern times than the 1960s when the film is set.

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Connections

References Tabu: A Story of the South Seas (1931)

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Soundtracks

Tú Serás Mi Baby
Written by Jeff Barry, Ellie Greenwich, and Phil Spector
Performed by Les Surfs

User Reviews

Exactly the type of poetic old-fashioned film I adore. With its astonishing cinematography, Tabu is a majestic film that had a profound effect on me.

Tabu is exactly the type of poetic old-fashioned film I adore. It's a simple story told very unconventionally, with the long slow death of a character in the first half (entitled "Paradise Lost") and then the best years of her life in the second ("Paradise") to the point of where the aforementioned Paradise came to an end. The aesthetics of the film are the real highlight here and truly capture the essence of the story in a unique way. The lush texture in the rich black and white photography are a delight to watch, and recall the effects Jim Jarmusch's Dead Man's cinematography had with the ethereal, sometimes tragic and sometimes comic atmosphere it created. The timeless cinematography is also reminiscent of the 1920s studio films with manufactured exterior shots and the use of a traditional 1.37:1 ratio. There's a fascinating use of sound too, with the second half being dialogue-less, despite watching characters talk, and featuring only atmosphere sounds of the jungle. There's also a great use of a Ronettes song that I love ostensibly translated into Portuguese. Tabu is a majestic film that had a profound effect on me. It's an interesting take on the long term consequence of a 'taboo' (in this case, adultery). One of the best of the year.

9/10