A Corte do Norte

The Northern Land

(Portugal, 2008, 127 minutes)

The imperious younger daughter of rundown provincial nobility becomes obsessed with solving the mystery of the strange disappearance of her scandalous great-great-grandmother. Baroquely romantic family saga, breathtakingly photographed and theatrically staged; its ponderous, funereal rhythm and elaborate narrative pretty much limits its audience.

António da Cunha Telles and Pandora da Cunha Telles present a Filmes de Fundo production, supported by ICA and RTP. Starring Ana Moreira; Ricardo Aibéo, Rogério Samora, Custódia Gallego, Lígia Roque, Laura Soveral, João Ricardo, Marcello Urgeghe, Margarida Vila-Nova; special guests, Fernanda Borsatti, Rita Blanco, Virgílio Castelo. Directed by João Botelho; screenplay by João Botelho, based on the novel by Agustina Bessa-Luís, A Corte do Norte; director of photography (colour), João Ribeiro; production designer, Catarina Amaro; costume designer, Sílvia Grabowski; film editor, João Braz.