Maria do Mar (1930)

Directed by

José Leitão de Barros

Genre

drama film, silent film

Country

Portugal

Runtime

1h 34m

Rating

6.4 of 10 from 11 voters

Elsewhere

IMDb

How it feels

In a small Portuguese fishing village, the daily lives and struggles of the community are shown through a fictional story. The film captures the hard work and resilience of the people who depend on the sea.

quietearthydocumentary-likegrittyauthenticmeditativebittersweet

What happens

Maria do Mar is a 1930 Portuguese silent drama film, a docufiction, directed by Leitão de Barros. In March 2000, the Portuguese Cinematheque released a restoration of the film in Lisbon and Porto. The film is notable not just for its narrative but also for its innovative use of cinematic techniques influenced by German expressionism, Soviet montage, and American filmmaking styles. It is considered one of the earliest examples of "ethnofiction," where real cultural and social practices are depicted within a fictional framework. The film's documentary-like authenticity is one of its strengths, capturing the everyday struggles and resilience of Nazaré's fishing community. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)

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