True and Tender is the North

True and Tender is the North

2008 · 122 min · ★ 5.0 · Romance, Drama

Adaptation of a 1987 novel by Agustina Bessa Luis, a multi-generation exploration of a wealthy family with a mysterious past and a house on the island of Madeira.

Directed by João Botelho · Written by João Botelho

Your Rating

Cast

Make it a double feature

8h 52m together

True and Tender is the North

The Satin Slipper

Both from João Botelho.

More from João BotelhoSee all →

The Satin SlipperThe Satin Slipper · 1986
The Satin Slipper
7.61986
MovieDramaHistory
During the century of the Spanish Gold, Doña Prouhèze, wife of a nobleman, deeply loves Don Rodrigo, who is forced to leave Spain and go to America. Meanwhile Prouhèze is sent to Africa to rule the city of Mogador. Ten years later Rodrigo leaves America and travels to Africa in search of Prouhèze to find out that she died and eventually meeting her daughter.
Hard TimesHard Times · 1988
Hard Times
7.31988
MovieDrama
A film adaptation of the Charles Dickens novel "Hard Times" set in a Portuguese industrial town of the 1980s.
Manoel’s DestiniesManoel’s Destinies · 1984
Manoel’s Destinies
7.31984
MovieFantasyAdventure
When the child Manuel wanders into a garden that is off-limits to him, he meets an unidentified fisherman, and another boy -- the boy is actually himself several years down the road. Manuel experiences three different versions of his encounters in the garden, revealing that fate can have several twists and turns in one's life, depending on decisions that are made early on.
Se a Memória ExisteSe a Memória Existe · 2000
Se a Memória Existe
7.02000
Movie
A dozen of the revolutionary Army officers that played eminent parts in the change of political regime in Portugal, from a military dictatorship to a social-democracy, read a book to a young girl, describing in a poetic, yet realistic way, what happened in the streets, and minds, of her People in April 25, 1974.
Lisboa no Cinema, Um Ponto de VistaLisboa no Cinema, Um Ponto de Vista · 1994
Lisboa no Cinema, Um Ponto de Vista
6.51994
MovieDocumentary
The city during the beginning of cinema. The typical city at the time of the dictatorship. The New Lisbon of the New Cinema. Lisbon after the Revolution. The white city of foreigners. A geographical and moviegoer screenplay of Lisbon through the images of films and testimonies of several filmmakers who filmed in Lisbon.
A Portuguese FarewellA Portuguese Farewell · 1986
A Portuguese Farewell
6.21986
MovieDrama
In Africa, during the colonial war, a patrol is lost in the bush and a soldier dies in operation. Twelve years later, in Portugal, the soldier family meets in peace.
No Dia dos Meus AnosNo Dia dos Meus Anos · 1992
No Dia dos Meus Anos
6.01992
MovieDrama
This Portuguese movie directed by João Botelho, is part of The Four Elements series. This is the second episode, The Air.
The Maias: Story of a Portuguese FamilyThe Maias: Story of a Portuguese Family · 2014
The Maias: Story of a Portuguese Family
5.82014
MovieRomanceHistory
The tragedy and comedy in Carlos' life begins, grows and ends like the tragedy and comedy of Portugal. In the company of his close friend, João da Ega, allegedly a brilliant writer, Carlos, with his idle existence as an aristocratic doctor, spends his time to enjoying friends and lovers. Until he falls in love. She is a new character in this revolutionary novel. It's a vertiginous passion that goes beyond that past gloominess to reach a new and darker abyss, incest.
TrafficTraffic · 1998
Traffic
5.71998
MovieComedy
Young Jesus is taken on a vacation by his parents (Rita Blanco, Adriano Luz) to a deserted beach resort. They accidentally fall into overnight wealth after Jesus digs in the sand, uncovering a large drug stash. Others characters intersecting here include an alcoholic actress, a philandering banker, a general trafficking in arms, priests who close their church and head north as hitchhikers, politicians who watch an all-girl production of Julius Caesar, and beggars who recite a children's story in a huge heap of trash.
Who Are You?Who Are You? · 2001
Who Are You?
5.62001
MovieHistoryDrama
Maria de Noronha, at 13 years old, suffers from high fevers and violent hemoptysis caused by a ruthless tuberculosis. To alleviate the pain, she gathers poppies from her garden and, at night, places them on her bed pillows. But the poppies have a devastating effect. Her deep sleep is invaded by ghosts and hallucinations: the luxury and decadence of the Portuguese 16th century. A broken nation, occupied by strangers.
PilgrimagePilgrimage · 2017
Pilgrimage
5.52017
MovieHistoryAdventure
Adventurer, pilgrim, penitent but above all outstanding writer, Fernão Mendes Pinto left us an unparalleled romance, the living and human palpitation of one of the greatest historical adventures of man.
DisquietDisquiet · 2010
Disquiet
5.52010
MovieDrama
Lisbon, today. In a room of a house at Douradores Street, a man invents dreams and theorizes about them. The essence of the dreams itself becomes physical, palpable, visible. The text itself materializes in its musicality. And, in front of our eyes, this music can be felt with the ears, brain and heart. It spreads itself in the street where the man lives, in the city that he loves above all and over the entire world.
La ValseLa Valse · 2012
La Valse
5.22012
Movie
A choreographic poem by Maurice Ravel.
The Year of the Death of Ricardo ReisThe Year of the Death of Ricardo Reis · 2020
The Year of the Death of Ricardo Reis
4.42020
MovieDrama
Fernando Pessoa, one of the greatest writers in Portuguese, created an immense parallel world and several heteronyms so as to endure the loneliness of genius. José Saramago, 1998 Nobel Laureate in Literature, has a heteronym, Ricardo Reis, return to Portugal after a 16-year exile in Brazil. 1936 is a perilous year with Mussolini’s fascism, Hitler’s Nazism, Spain’s Civil War and Salazar’s New State in Portugal. And Fernando Pessoa meets his creation, Reis. Two women, Lídia and Marcenda, are Reis’ carnal and impossible passions. “Life and Death as one” allows for literature and cinema.
The FatalistThe Fatalist · 2005
The Fatalist
3.82005
MovieDrama
The complex relationship between master and servant is explored in director João Botelho's adaptation of Denis Diderot's popular novel Jacques le Fataliste et Son Maître. As Tiago (Rogério Samora) drives his master (André Gomes) through the Portuguese countryside to an unspecified destination, the traveling pair embark on a series of highly philosophical discussions. Flowing with tales of his life in the military and previous sexual escapades, Tiago trades a series of tales with his rapt passenger, including the story of a vengeful spurned lover who plots revenge on the nobleman who rejected her by transforming a prostitute into a society lady and convincing him to marry the tainted bride.
CorruptionCorruption · 2007
Corruption
3.72007
MovieCrimeDrama
A crime drama based on the life of a woman who lived for years with a man that was the head of a corruption network in the Portuguese football world.

More Like This

A History of ViolenceA History of Violence · 2005
A History of Violence
7.22005
MovieDramaThriller
An average family is thrust into the spotlight after the father commits a seemingly self-defense murder at his diner.
Forrest GumpForrest Gump · 1994
Forrest Gump
8.51994
MovieComedyDrama
A man with a low IQ has accomplished great things in his life and been present during significant historic events—in each case, far exceeding what anyone imagined he could do. But despite all he has achieved, his one true love eludes him.
Life ItselfLife Itself · 2018
Life Itself
7.22018
MovieDramaRomance
As a young New York couple goes from college romance to marriage and the birth of their first child, the unexpected twists of their journey create reverberations that echo over continents and through lifetimes.
Nobody KnowsNobody Knows · 2004
Nobody Knows
8.02004
MovieDrama
In a small Tokyo apartment, twelve-year-old Akira must care for his younger siblings after their mother leaves them and shows no sign of returning.
The BountyThe Bounty · 1984
The Bounty
6.81984
MovieActionDrama
An idyllic voyage to Tahiti in 1789 turns a crew aboard the H.M.S. Bounty against its captain when they find a tropical paradise.
Battle RoyaleBattle Royale · 2000
Battle Royale
7.32000
MovieDramaThriller
In the future, the Japanese government captures a class of ninth-grade students and forces them to kill each other under the revolutionary "Battle Royale" act.
The Straight StoryThe Straight Story · 1999
The Straight Story
7.71999
MovieDramaAdventure
Retired farmer and widower Alvin Straight learns one day that his estranged brother Lyle has suffered a severe stroke. Alvin is determined to make things right with Lyle while he still can, but his brother lives in Wisconsin, while Alvin is stuck in Iowa with no car and no driver's license. He then has the idea of making the trip on his old lawnmower, thus beginning a picturesque and at times deeply spiritual odyssey.
CachéCaché · 2005
Caché
7.02005
MovieMysteryDrama
As the host of a literary TV show, Georges begins receiving anonymously filmed videos of his family alongside cryptic, disturbing drawings, but as the tapes become increasingly intimate, they reveal a stalker who has known him for a very long time.
The PartyThe Party · 1980
The Party
6.61980
MovieDramaRomance
A thirteen-year-old French girl deals with moving to a new city and school in Paris, while at the same time her parents are getting a divorce.
The Party 2The Party 2 · 1982
The Party 2
6.41982
MovieComedyRomance
A young French teenage girl after moving to a new city falls in love with a boy and is thinking of having sex with him because her girlfriends have already done it.
Our HospitalityOur Hospitality · 1923
Our Hospitality
7.51923
MovieComedyRomance
A young man falls for a young woman on his trip home; unbeknownst to him, her family has vowed to kill every member of his family.
A Streetcar Named DesireA Streetcar Named Desire · 1951
A Streetcar Named Desire
7.61951
MovieDramaThriller
A disturbed, aging Southern belle moves in with her sister for solace — but being face-to-face with her brutish brother-in-law accelerates her downward spiral.
Little Miss SunshineLittle Miss Sunshine · 2006
Little Miss Sunshine
7.72006
MovieComedyDrama
A family loaded with quirky, colorful characters piles into an old van and road trips to California for little Olive to compete in a beauty pageant.
Strangers on a TrainStrangers on a Train · 1951
Strangers on a Train
7.71951
MovieCrimeThriller
A charming psychopath tries to coerce a tennis star into his theory that two strangers can commit the perfect crime by exchanging murders—each killing the other’s most-hated person.

Rate this film

Your ratings make Midnight smarter