Embargo (2010)

Inspired by the Nobel prize winner Saramago, Embargo tells the story of Nuno who is a man who works in a sandwich stand, but he's also the man who invented a machine which promises to revolutionise the shoe industry. In a time of a petrol embargo, Nuno finds himself in a sinister situation. Blinded by the promise of success and his obsession with achieving his goals in life, he tries desperately to sell his machine. He is mysteriously trapped in his own car and misses the once in a lifetime opportunity to finally present this invention to the world and his life is suddenly embargoed. Embargo simmers with the same kind of dark comedy humour that can be found in the films of the Cohen brothers. The type of humour that isn't in your face but that you still feel in every bone of your body and that spreads itself around the theatre. The film is based on a short story with the same title by Nobel of literature - Jose Saramago, who has also written Blimunda and Blindness. Antonio Ferreira has created a portuguese film that feels warm, comical and comfortably peculiar.