The Convent (film)

The Convent (O Convento)
Directed by	Manoel de Oliveira
Produced by	Paulo Branco
Written by	Manoel de Oliveira
Starring	Catherine Deneuve John Malkovich
Music by	Krishna Levy
Cinematography	Mario Barroso
Distributed by	Strand Releasing
Release date(s)	1995
Running time	90 minutes
Country	Portugal
Language	French English Portuguese

The Convent (Portuguese: O Convento) is a 1995 film by Portuguese director Manoel de Oliveira, starring Catherine Deneuve and John Malkovich and based on the novel As Terras Do Risco by Agustina Bessa-Luís. It was entered into the 1995 Cannes Film Festival.

Plot

The journey of Michael Padovic, a professor from the U.S.A, who arrives with his wife, Helene, at a Portuguese convent where he expects to find the documents needed to prove his theory: Shakespeare was born in Spain, not in England, and was Jewish. The main characters arrive at the convent where they are greeted by an enigmatic stranger who refers to himself as Baltar; he is the keeper of the convent. Other characters include a fisherman, the beautiful bookkeeper who is attracted to Dr. Padovic's work, and an elderly man who goes by the name of Balthazar.

Cast

• Catherine Deneuve as Hélène
• John Malkovich as Michael Padovic
• Luís Miguel Cintra as Baltar
• Leonor Silveira as Piedade
• Duarte de Almeida as Baltazar
• Heloísa Miranda as Berta
• Gilberto Gonçalves as Fisherman

External links

• The Convent (O Convento) at the Internet Movie Database