The Portuguese House

Fernando is a quiet geography teacher. His wife disappears one day and no explanation is left behind. The police find nothing and Fernando cannot go on. After a while he leaves his home, his job and his name. He takes work as a gardener on a Portuguese estate, and in applying does not use his own name but settles into someone else's identity. The unexpected friendship he forms with the owner keeps him inside that borrowed life. Avelina Prat does not place loss and grief inside a mystery structure; she leaves the disappearance unresolved. The interest is in how much of himself Fernando keeps while living as another person. Manolo Solo plays Fernando and Maria de Medeiros the owner of the estate. Who it's for: Viewers who like quiet drama built on assumed identity, and Spanish and Portuguese cinema. Who it's not for: The unanswered questions will frustrate some viewers. The pace is slow and there is little dramatic momentum.