The Northern Court – from book to film

Authors

  • Maria do Rosário Lupi Bello Universidade Aberta

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.17398/1888-4067.16.89

Keywords:

The Northern Court, João Botelho, Film adaptation

Abstract

In 2008, João Botelho adapted to the screen the book A Corte do Norte/The Northern Court (1987) by Agustina Bessa-Luís, whose argument had previously been composed by José Álvaro de Morais. The story is based on the life of the famous 19th century theatre actress Emília das Neves and symbolically overlaps several generations of women between 1860 and 1960, creating implicit and explicit relationships among them, developed around a mysterious death. With the Island of Madeira as a backdrop, the landscape constitutes an important element of meaning, increasing the sense of mystery that runs through the entire film. The overlapping of several temporal planes, the correspondent identification between different female characters and the weight of the literary text give...

References

Andresen, Sophia de Mello Breyner (2010): Obra Poética. Edição de
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Bessa-Luís, Agustina (1996): A Corte do Norte. 2ª edição, Lisboa,
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Botelho, João & Rodrigues, António (org.) (2022): João Botelho. Filmes
são histórias, o cinema é o modo de as filmar, Lisboa, Cinemateca
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Leão, Isabel Ponce de (org.) (2008): Estudos Agustinianos. Prefácio de
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Lima, Isabel Pires de et al (coord.) (2017): Ética e política na obra de
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Machado, Álvaro Manuel (2008): “Agustina: sagração e enigma da
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Filmografia
João Botelho, A Corte do Norte (2008). Portugal; cor; 122 mns.

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Published

09/11/2023

How to Cite

Bello, M. do R. L. (2023). The Northern Court – from book to film. Limite. Revista De Estudios Portugueses Y De La lusofonía, 16, 89-100. https://doi.org/10.17398/1888-4067.16.89