The initiative is led by the Portuguese Association of Writers (APE), under the coordination of researcher and general secretary Luís Machado.
The screening of the movie ‘O Primo Basílio’ (1959), directed by António Lopes Ribeiro, at the Portuguese Cinematheque in Lisbon, on September 5 at 6:00 PM, will inaugurate the cycle. This film is an adaptation of the novel by Eça de Queirós, featuring António Vilar, Aura Abranches, Cecília Guimarães, João Villaret, and Carmen Mendes, among others.
On the same day, at 8:30 PM, a dinner with a “Queirosian menu” will be served at the restaurant located within the Cinematheque building, evoking the meal in Tormes described in Eça’s work ‘A Cidade e as Serras’.
The menu will include, among other dishes, Tormes-style rice with beans and roasted chicken. This will be followed by a debate on the life and work of Eça de Queirós (1845-1900), moderated by Luís Machado, with the participation of ambassador António Monteiro, who will discuss the writer’s diplomatic career, actor Rui Mendes, who will read excerpts from ‘A Cidade e as Serras’, researcher Maria do Rosário Lupi Bello from the Universidade Aberta, who will recall Eça’s works in cinema adaptations, and gastronome Virgílio Nogueiro Gomes, who will speak about Queirosian cuisine.
On September 22, at 5:00 PM, the film ‘O Dia do Desespero’ (1992), directed by Manoel de Oliveira, will be shown at the Biblioteca Palácio Galveias, also in the capital. The cast includes Teresa Madruga, Luís Miguel Cintra, Canto e Castro, and Diogo Dória, among others.
Presented by APE President José Manuel Mendes, the film evokes the last days of Camilo Castelo Branco (1825-1890) and the blindness that led him to suicide.
