Tren nocturno a Lisboa

Night Train to Lisbon is one of the most philosophical movies to hit theaters in the last couple of years. The trip started by Raimund is not between places but between identities. An existential journey into the great unknown of the soul. Some say we take ourselves everywhere we go. This movie tries to tell us instead that we *find* ourselves in those places, we discover a new way of seeing with our own eyes and, when we leave, a part of us stays in that place forever. Returning there is a way of visiting ourselves, like we would an old friend... There's so many layers, so many subtle metaphors, so much poetry in the imagery and storytelling, that despite being such a straightforward story you can't help feeling like you're walking through a maze, a labyrinth of emotions and thoughts, where present, past and future merge into a vast uplifting eternity. One of the best crafted uses of mise-en-abîme i recall ever seeing in a movie! Raimund is Raimund, but he's also Pascal Mercier, and also Amadeu Prado and also You. There's a fiction within a fiction here: a book within a book within a movie. A lie within a lie: a poet within a reader, within a spectator, within a person. This dilution between fiction and reality and between the actor and the audience often occurs, but rarely is it ever a theme, rarely is it ever presented as a question to the audience and rarely so beautifully answered. This game of mirrors will leave you full of wonder and hungry for life. There couldn't be a better outcome for a story that starts with a suicide attempt... There's too many reasons to watch this movie and too little space to review it properly unfortunately... The scenery of Lisbon, the universal anguish of the characters, the excruciating portrayal of the Portuguese dictatorship, the lessons it offers on some of the most important questions one can ask oneself... Do yourself a favor and go see it!

A good story with a good cast, told in a nice way for everyone to feel, experience and ask himself questions about life. Life as encounters, as crashes and as sharing - sharing moments, sharing places, sharing memories.

A friend says: "Only the people that are alive and have the memory of you can be the true witnesses of your existence on Earth, otherwise - have we been really alive?!...".

You meet people every day in your life, but it is just when you collide with them - voluntarily or not, when they share their life with you and you share yours with them.

I encourage you to take this train. Its worth it! :)

In Bern, Switzerland, the teacher Raimund Gregorius (Jeremy Irons) saves a young woman from committing suicide jumping off a bridge and brings her to the school where he works. During his class, she leaves the building and Raimund unsuccessfully runs after her to give her coat back. He finds a book, "Um Ourives das Palavras" (A Goldsmith of the Words) written by the Portuguese Amadeu de Almeida Prado (Jack Huston) in the pocket and he goes to the bookstore stamped on the first page and discovers that the book was sold on the previous day to the woman. He finds a train ticket to Lisbon that will departure in fifteen minutes inside the book and he goes to the Central Station expecting to find the woman. He embarks in the train to Lisbon and reads the book, becoming fascinated with the story. When he arrives in Lisbon, Raimund decides to stay in the city to meet Amadeu. He finds his house, where his sister Adriana (Charlotte Rampling) lives, and soon he discovers that Amadeu is dead. Raimund decides to research the life of Amadeu, who was a doctor and writer that belonged to the resistance against the dictator Salazar, and his discoveries affect his own boring life.

"Night Train to Lisbon" is a movie with a tedious beginning, when the lead character leaves his students in their classroom and travels to Lisbon in a senseless situation. Then there is serendipity, when he has an accident and breaks his glasses, and the doctor introduces him to her uncle that was a friend of Amadeu. But the development of the plot like a puzzle and the open conclusion are excellent and makes worthwhile watching this movie. The excellent European cast is another great attraction. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "Trem Noturno para Lisboa" ("Night Train to Lisbon")

I found this movie more like a great book, the pace was such that you could synchronize with the dialogue and think about what was going on. I was only vaguely aware that there had been a dictatorship in Portugal during the 70s so this was an important revelation. I did know that Portugal was slowly pulling out of its various foreign colonial possessions, as most European powers did after World War II.

I could not help thinking of there being a connection between Amadeu de Prado and the world famous Portuguese poet Fernando Pessoa. The shots of Lisbon are wonderful, the beautiful harbour and hilly narrow streets. I could imagine Vasco da Gama's fleet leaving the port during Portugal's period of world exploration. The acting was superb, Jeremy Irons was the perfect Prof. On the surface absent minded and intellectual, but in practice, seizing the moment with an iron courage to probe the truth no matter where it led, but with a sense of humour knowing that nothing in life is all black or white. Martina Gedeck was so believable and you like her more and more with each shot. Tom Courtney's performance as João Eça was amazing but scary when you realize what happens to ordinary people during extraordinary times.

Many themes are encountered such as friendship, betrayal, and life as a chaotic process without any divine guidance. My hope is at the end of the film our professor needed a second adjustment for his new glasses.

I should start by saying if you're older (say 45 or more) you should definitely check out this movie. It has some lines in it that are extraordinary and it's worth seeing just for those nuggets. This is one of those movies that talks to you at a personal level. I don't want to describe too much of it because that would ruin the whole point.

But, I will say...

The director moves you along at such a perfect pace that you almost feel like you're floating. The topics aren't casual but he hovers over them at just the right height.

The acting is right on the money, it suits the movie perfectly, no one is out of step.

The story moves seamlessly between past and present, you won't feel a bump anywhere. It's true, the movie is multi-layered, but the straight up story is more than enough.

And the ending is perfect for this type of movie.

It really is worth the watch, but as I mentioned you might need to be a little older to really...