‘Night Train to Lisbon’ (‘Combóio Nocturno para Lisboa’, with subtitles in Portuguese) is an enchanting 2013 movie directed by Bille August, with screenplay by Greg Latter and Ulrich Herrmann.
Based on a bestselling book of the same name, written by Pascal Mercier (pen name of the Swiss writer Peter Bieri) in 2004, it talks about the life of one Dr Amadeu Inácio de Almeida Prado, whose philosophical musings are found in a volume titled Um Ourives das Palavras (‘A Wordsmith’).
Starring Jeremy Irons and Mélanie Laurent in the lead roles, it features Portuguese actors Beatriz Batarda, Marco d’Almeida and Nicolau Breyner.
I thought I would read both works but, alas, ‘A Wordsmith’ exists only on screen; the book (Editora Cedros Vermelhos, 1975) and its author are fictitious…
Many thanks to the Consulate-General of Portugal in Goa for bringing us the ninth edition of the Lusophone Film Festival, with ‘Combóio Nocturno para Lisboa’ as the opening film, at the Maquinezes this evening!
