THE PORTUGUESE NUN
A WOMAN ALONE
Julie de Hauranne.
Your passport, please.
Miss de Hauranne,
are you with the film?
Yes, I'm an actress.
French people
rarely speak Portuguese.
My mother was Portuguese.
My father is French Basque.
So you know Lisbon?
No.
When I was little, we went to Porto.
Then my mother died.
I'll be discovering Lisbon.
One of your colleagues
is already here.
Yes. The director.
When do the other actors arrive?
There's only one.
The day after tomorrow, I think.
Only two actors?
I recorded the sound already, alone.
We're just filming images here.
You two don't speak to each other?
No.
And I'm never seen speaking.
So what did you record?
A 17th century French text,
that we only hear.
I never see French films.
They're for intellectuals.
Our films are popular in Portugal.
Only in Lisbon,
where there are many intellectuals.
No city is perfect.
I'll show you your room.
Thank you.
If you need something, dial 9.
I suppose this is your ball.
Yes, Madam.
Here you are.
Thanks, Madam.
Are you looking for someone?
I don't think so.
Are you alone?
Yes.
Me too.
What's your name?
Vasco.
I'm Julie.
How do you say it?
Ju-lie.
Madam Ju-lie.
Madam is very beautiful.
Good afternoon, Vasco.
Good afternoon, Madam.
If I'm alone
I don't want to be
If I'm not alone
I want to be
It seems I always want to be
What I am not
Happiness is being someone else
But that someone else is not happy
Because he follows his own mind
And not my designs
People do as they please
With what is only nothing
But regret if they don't do it
It lies abandoned on the road
Oh, Denis!
Yes, I'm here.
I'm out walking around.
Have dinner without me,
I want to explore.
A drink around midnight, perfect.
At the hotel bar, ok.
See you then.
If I loved you as much
as I've told you a thousand times,
wouldn't I be dead by now?
I've deceived you,
it is you who should be offended.
Miss?
Do you speak Portuguese?
Yes.
Isn't this square beautiful at night?
Yes.
It's beautiful in the daytime too,
but not the same.
I'll find out tomorrow.
Lisbon never shows us
the same face twice.
I haven't had a chance
to see that yet.
Where are you from?
Paris.
- Are you on holiday?
- No, I'm working.
Goodnight.
Here's my card.
My name is Enrique.
If I can do anything for you,
don't hesitate to ask.
Thank you.
Good evening, Denis. Excuse me.
For what?
I'm late.
Barely.
Did you enjoy your evening?
Yes.
Do you have friends in Lisbon?
Yes.
So you weren't alone tonight?
No.
Good.
When we recorded the text in Paris,
you didn't seem well.
I'd just separated from my boyfriend.
The one I knew?
You've known a few.
The actor?
Actors are my specialty.
The latest one, tall and dark.
He was short and blond. Alexandre.
I knew him, too.
He was nice.
Yes, he was nice.
I'm happy to be here to play
the Portuguese nun.
Do you think
you'd be happier if,
like her, you'd had only
one love in your life?
I wonder whether, in any life,
there is ever more than one love.
THE COUNT OF VISEU
There's sound,
but just a guide track.
Quiet on the set.
We're about to shoot.
Quiet, please.
Camera.
Roll sound.
Rolling.
Scene three, shot one, take one.
Action!
Cut.
Hello.
Good evening.
May I speak to Mr. Cunha Melho
de Lencastre, please?
Speaking.
This is Julie de Hauranne.
I don't believe I gave you my name.
We met at the restaurant last night.
I was just thinking of you.
Last night you were alone.
If you're alone tonight,
perhaps we could get acquainted.
I just made an appointment.
But I'd be happy to canceI it.
You mustn't do that.
It can wait.
Where are you?
At the Hotel Senhora Do Monte,
in Graca.
I'll be there in thirty minutes.
I spent my earliest years
in a quinta,
surrounded by olive trees,
with my parents and little sister.
Dad was gone a lot.
Those are the happiest memories
of my life.
I was five
when the Revolution began.
That Revolution always
seemed abstract to me.
For me it was very real.
It was surely necessary
for the country,
but I'd rather have lived
in ignorance of that necessity.
What did the Revolution do to you?
My father, the Count of Viseu,
held important positions
under Salazar and Caetano.
He was compromised.
When the new regime came in,
he lost the quinta.
Fair punishment, surely.
But it deprived me
of the one place I'd been happy.
Where did you go?
We owned a building in Lisbon,
near Principe Real.
We lived on one floor,
without much furniture.
After a year, my father died.
The following year I lost my sister.
My mother nearly lost her mind.
To create a connection
with the world,
I studied medicine
and became a cardiologist.
A noble profession.
Yes. But I've never practised it.
Since my mother died, I've lived
alone in that vast, empty flat,
with a maid who only comes
during the day.
After dinner, would you accept
an invitation to my home?
Yes.
Why did you call me tonight?
I was touched by the way
you approached me yesterday.
I don't understand it myself.
I told you
I had an appointment tonight.
Yes, and you cancelled it.
That touched me too.
But my appointment still awaits me.
In the next room.
I'll introduce you.
Meet my appointment.
It's loaded.
I'd decided to end my story
like a Russian novel.
Now you won't?
No, thanks to you.
What will you do?
Leave.
Where?
We kept the servants' quarters
at the quinta.
I'll go there tomorrow, to think.
One must never think too much.
I know.
I'll stay only a few days.
Then what will you do?
Something with meaning.
Perhaps I'll finally find the courage
to practise medicine.
I'm glad.
What shall we do now?
You came to my room.
We could have a love affair.
But that would be derisory in light
of the feelings you inspire in me.
When I called,
I wasn't looking for an affair.
Even less so now.
I'll take you home, then.
I wish we could stay here
and be still.
Modern life does not allow
for immobility.
Either we go to bed,
or I take you home.
Let's do as modern life says
and take the automobile.
You forgot the candelabra.
You are the light.
I wanted to show you Lisbon
from here.
Can you imagine ending
a Russian novel
tonight, in this city?
Lisbon is not a Russian city.
I realise that, thanks to you.
The energy Lisbon gives us
is life itself.
The chapel is open.
It often is at night.
Let's go in.
Yes.
That nun...
She often spends the night
in the chapel.
I suddenly felt like
I had replaced her.
Maybe you had.
What should I do?
Talk to her.
I can't imagine she talks like we do.
In Lisbon, nuns talk.
And in Lisbon,
I will be the Portuguese nun.
I think you already are.
But tonight you must rest.
I suppose so.
I'll take you back to your hotel.
In Lisbon, the weather
is always changing.
Yes.
But today there will be no rain.
Good.
Only showers.
Good morning.
I didn't get the call sheet.
Of course not.
This is a chaotic shoot.
What's happening this morning?
We're filming without actors.
What about me?
Meet us here at 2 pm.
Here?
The dressing room is at the hotel.
I'll go for a stroll then.
Enjoy yourself.
Vasco!
No school today, Vasco?
I never go to school.
How old are you?
Six.
At six you don't go to school?
My cousins go, but not me.
What do your parents say?
I have no parents.
Who raises you?
Madalena.
Who's she?
My aunt.
But not really.
Where do you live?
In that house, on the second floor.
But I can't invite you over.
Madalena would mind?
No.
But today she's working,
I can't get in.
You can't get into your own home?
Not when Madalena works.
When will she be back?
This afternoon. Around the time
my cousins finish school.
Where do you eat?
At home.
But you can't get in?
When Madalena works,
I eat morning and night.
Come, let's go for a snack.
I'm happy to be with you.
You're the most beautiful woman
I've ever seen.
And Madam Julie is a pretty name.
Vasco is nice too.
My mother's name was Isabel.
So you knew your mother?
No.
My grandmother told me.
Where's your grandmother?
She's dead.
Could I meet Madalena?
Tomorrow she's not working.
I'll come tomorrow morning.
Has Martin Dautand arrived?
Who?
The other actor.
Yes. I did his make-up.
He's handsome.
I've never met him,
but I've seen him in films.
I don't see how you can make a film
with only two actors.
And we only have
two scenes together.
We're shooting them today.
What happens the rest of the time?
The film is...
unconventional.
Boring, you mean.
I hope not.
The story moves me.
What's it about?
I'm playing a nun, Mariana.
She's in love
with a French naval officer,
who leaves her.
A nun mustn't love a man.
She's given herself to God.
Perhaps through loving a man,
this nun discovers that God
has given himself to her.
There, you're beautiful.
You can go to wardrobe now.
No one's told me where the set is.
Right next door,
in the Nossa Senhora do Monte
chapel.
I'm Julie.
I'm Martin.
I don't speak Portuguese.
But I'm pleased to meet you.
Likewise.
I almost worked with you
several times.
But it didn't happen.
Everything happens at the right time.
Perhaps so.
I think they're waiting for us.
Let's go.
This will be a master shot.
Julie, you'll kneel down here,
before the camera.
Martin, when Renata
gives you the signal,
you enter from outside,
notice the nun and watch her
from the back of the chapel.
Then slowly move up the aisle
and stand to her left.
After a short while, Julie,
you feel his presence
and turn to look at him.
Your eyes meet.
Quiet, please. We're about to roll.
Whenever you're ready, Denis.
Camera.
Roll sound.
Scene five, shot one, take one.
Action.
Cut.
Excuse me!
When are you leaving?
As soon as we clear up, Madam.
Don't dally. I must prepare
the chapel for tonight.
What's happening tonight?
Every night a saint comes here
to spend the night with God.
I'd do something else with my nights.
But it's her choice.
Quiet on the set.
We're about to roll.
Quiet outside.
When you're ready, Denis.
Camera.
Roll sound.
Scene seven, shot one, take one.
Action.
Cut.
All evening the crew
is shooting without us.
This is a strange shoot.
It lets the actors get acquainted.
Do you live in Paris?
Yes.
And yet, we never met.
Not even at a party.
I don't go out much.
I met the love of my life years ago.
We live a quiet life together.
I'd love to be in the same situation.
What's her name?
Marlene.
You share a common syllable.
It's no longer passionate.
Actually, it never was.
Maybe that's why it works so well.
We hope to have a child soon.
You don't have children?
No.
I've had only passions.
Unhappy ones.
Everything seems clear and obvious.
Like on a map.
There's our hotel.
Yes, I see.
And yet, nothing is clear at all.
Would you like one last drink?
The hotel bar has a wonderful view.
What do you see?
Among other things, this garden.
It'll be like passing through
the looking glass.
Yes.
Let's go.
I'm sorry.
Why?
You surely misunderstood
my gesture.
I think I understood it very well.
It was very selfish of me.
Why?
It's true that Marlene and I
are happy together.
That's good.
But maybe for it to continue,
I need an occasional moment
of passion outside.
A brief passion?
Yes.
If something were to happen
between us,
it would be brief.
That's why I feel selfish.
My passions have all been brief.
If sleeping with me would help you,
I'd feel like
I'd be doing a good deed.
So it would be selfish of me, too.
Let's accept our common selfishness.
Shall we go to your room or mine?
Let's go to mine.
It'll be like playing
The Portuguese Nun again.
Come in.
Today I shoot my solo scenes.
Then I'll catch the plane to Paris.
I finish shooting tomorrow,
and go home the day after.
Here's my card.
If you ever want to meet for a drink,
it would be a pleasure.
I hope you're not sad.
I told you last night...
I'm happy.
When you said it,
we were together.
Now we're parting.
I'm in the habit of separating.
Is there no way
to change one's habits?
I already have.
Usually when I leave someone,
I'm sad.
This morning I'm happy.
SISTER JOANA
Madam, I didn't know if you'd come.
I always keep my word.
Madalena is at home.
I told her about you.
Come.
This is the French lady.
This is Madalena.
Please come in, Madam.
Do you understand Portuguese?
Madam speaks Portuguese very well.
May I offer you a coffee?
You're very kind.
Madam is an actress.
Really?
Yes. I'm in Lisbon for a few days.
Where do you live?
In Paris.
How did you meet Vasco?
We met outside, in the square.
I was surprised he wasn't in school.
Vasco, go play outside.
See you later.
When Vasco was born, just nearby,
his mother was sixteen.
She left home immediately afterwards.
Who is his father?
Nobody knows.
Are you a relative?
No.
My mother was a childhood friend
of his grandmother,
who cared for him after he was born.
His mother never returned?
No.
When Vasco was two, we learned
she'd killed herself, in Porto.
His grandmother died a year ago.
The boy had no one.
My mother considered
his grandmother as her sister,
so I took him in.
But it's impossible.
We already have three children.
My husband works in Paris,
in construction.
Four days a week I clean houses.
I don't want to shut Vasco inside,
so I let him play outdoors.
That shocks you.
Why don't you put him school?
We can't officialise
our relationship.
At first I thought I'd adopt him,
but we can barely feed
our own family.
What will you do?
This summer I'll have to put him
in the orphanage.
Does he know?
No.
What if I found a family
to adopt him?
Where?
In France.
That would be a good deed.
I know one couple in particular.
Give me your phone number.
Maybe I'll have some news
before I leave.
I often pray for this child.
What do you ask for?
The grace of God.
Have you obtained it for him?
If he receives it,
it's not thanks to my prayers.
So why pray?
To feel the presence of God.
See you soon.
I must go now.
But I'll come say goodbye
before I leave.
The scene is simple.
You receive the letter, read it,
let it fall and turn to the sea.
Then you exit the frame.
All right.
Quiet on the set.
We're about to roll.
Whenever you're ready, Denis.
Camera.
Clap.
Scene fourteen, shot one, take one.
Action.
Cut.
You've reached Alice and Thomas.
Leave a message after the beep.
Hello Alice and Thomas, it's Julie.
I'm calling from Lisbon,
where I'm doing a film.
I have something important
to discuss with you,
too complicated for a message.
Try me on my mobile,
or I'll call you back.
Speak to you soon.
Good evening.
Good evening.
Are you happy with your day?
Everything went well.
Has Martin left?
We took him straight to the airport.
It was close, but he made the plane.
Tonight he'll sleep in Paris.
What are you doing tonight?
Nothing special.
Let's paint the town of Lisbon.
We're shooting tomorrow.
Exactly. It'll put you in the mood.
If the director says so.
We'll be very reasonable.
I had the keys to life
But I did not open
The doors behind which
happiness lies
I had the keys to life
But I did not live
My whole life was a saudade
I had so many illusions
And I was betrayed
All my great hopes for love
were dashed
I don't know why I lament this life
If I don't even want another
If this is why I was born
If this is why I'm here
If this is all I deserve
I will not go
I will not go
Let them come
with their welcoming lips
Their fiery eyes
It's all over
The most beautifuI love may come
I will not go
I will not go
I had the keys to life
They stole from me
They killed the poetry inside me
They left me with only sadness
And fountains in my eyes
Which I never wanted
If this is why I was born
If this is why I'm here
If this is all I deserve
I will not go
I will not go
Let them come
with their welcoming lips
Their fiery eyes
It's all over
The most beautifuI love may come
I will not go
I will not go
I have a red shawI
A memory of you
An embroidered secret
I sometimes wear when I go out
It carries a lifetime in it
The way life marks a face
But it gives itself a new youth
On nights when I wear it
It's been a shroud and a flag
Even a boat's saiI
It carries a lifetime in it
But they say I wear it well
You may think I lost my way
On a well-worn path
To show you I haven't forgotten
I wear this red shawI
I have a red shawI
A memory of you
Thank you.
Good evening.
Good evening.
Are you alone?
More or less.
Would you like to dance?
No.
Then let's have a drink.
In another life,
it would be a pleasure.
We have to live here and now.
But here and now,
I have to be somewhere else.
So we'll never meet again.
I'm sure we will.
You are a reincarnation
of King D. Sebastiao.
I doubt that.
King D. Sebastiao didn't like women.
I adore them.
You've had four hundred years.
Tastes change.
So...
If I'm D. Sebastiao...
Next time we meet, it'll be a sign.
But we're here,
just inches from each other.
You must learn patience.
One can't outrun one's destiny.
- Stop here.
- Your hotel is further down.
No, stop here.
I'm happy.
You speak Portuguese.
Yes.
Easy.
How do you feel?
A bit dizzy.
But happy.
That's good.
I've come several times to see you.
Are you sure you came for me?
You are the one I saw.
Do you spend the night here?
I come in the evening,
and return to the convent for Matins.
Where is your convent?
Down the hill, then up again.
For a bird, it's very near.
When do you sleep?
Between Matins and Lauds.
So you almost never sleep.
I leave sleep to those who need it.
Like me.
Can we go to the altar?
What is you name?
Sister Joana.
I chose the name for Joan of Arc.
Do you plan to end a siege?
Yes.
You feel well enough to stand?
Yes, I feel much better.
What siege do you want to end?
The siege of God.
Where?
God is besieged in me.
Even in you?
Does that surprise you?
Yes.
And yet, we live in the same world.
Yes,
but I live in the secular world.
God is not locked in a convent.
I have known a great quantity
of profane loves.
There is but one love,
without quantity.
It varies only in quality.
I'm an actress.
I try to show the truth
through unreal things.
God did the same when
He created the world.
In the film, I play a nun
carrying on a carnal affair
within the walls of her convent.
During the reign of D. Alfonso VI.
Such things were common
in Portugal then.
More than elsewhere?
Yes.
That's when people stopped believing.
For once, Portugal was avant-garde.
What caused this progress?
People could no longer believe
D. Sebastiao would come back,
because there was a king
on the throne.
On feast days,
people were garroted
and burnt on the Rossio,
but no one considered them
to be God's enemies,
nor did they consider
the executioners his servants.
All that remained
was to believe in Reason.
That's when the siege of God began.
Why would Reason be
an enemy of God?
Because He is real
and Reason is not.
Reason exists neither in man
nor in the world,
and even less in God.
I thought I was a strong person.
You seem to be.
But I fainted.
Saint Teresa fainted too.
But she was conjuring the seraph.
Maybe you were too.
I dare not tell you why it happened.
You are free to tell me or not.
I was watching you...
and I saw you disappear.
Disappear?
Where your body had been,
there was emptiness.
Perhaps at that moment
I ended the siege of God.
And if you did?
I must have found myself
face to face with Him.
When we're face to face with Him,
we disappear?
I don't know how
it looks on the outside.
But inside,
being face to face with Him
means loving with all our being.
How is it different
from profane love?
There is only one love.
I've been searching for it always,
but I remain a prisoner of the world.
It can also be found in the world.
I've only loved flesh and blood.
In my prayers,
I seek the Word incarnate.
Have you found it?
At times, I believe so.
How can we receive God's love?
By loving till we no longer exist.
Is that what you did earlier?
I have no idea.
At times, I've desired death.
Death is not love.
When we disappear through loving,
we cease to be what we are not.
What do we become?
We become what we are.
And what do we find?
Life.
Finding life is what I desire
above all else.
Finding life is giving life.
Each of us does it in our own way.
I am but a piece of wood carried
by the river.
You're wrong.
What have I done?
You came here.
Will I find life here, in Lisbon?
If it is here that you learn to love.
To the point of disappearing?
To the point of giving life.
I carry no child inside me.
All of us, men and women,
carry a new life inside us.
Then I am someone else.
We are all many beings.
Here, I am the Portuguese nun.
Like me.
And here, I have loved.
Like me.
Could we be the same woman?
It's possible.
Then we carry inside us
the child of our love.
Yes.
And this is where we will give birth.
Yes.
THE CHILD
AND THE HIDDEN ONE
Did you get home all right?
Yes.
Did you enjoy your evening?
Hipness can be pretty depressing.
I should've gone to bed
at a reasonable hour, like you.
I don't know
if the hour was reasonable.
I attended Matins in a convent.
I barely slept.
Did you go to the convent
in reaction to the disco?
No. It was a logical progression.
How so?
In the disco,
I met King D. Sebastiao.
Feel free to answer.
Friends from Paris...
I'll call them back.
Cut.
Wonderful.
- Shall we do another?
- Yes.
- Ready, Raphael?
- Ready.
Whenever you're ready, Denis.
Camera.
Roll sound.
Rolling.
Scene seventeen, shot two, take two.
Action.
Adieu.
I feeI I tell you too often
about the unbearable state I'm in.
And yet, I thank you
from the bottom of my heart
for the despair you cause me,
and I detest the serenity
in which I lived before I knew you.
Adieu,
my passion increases
with each moment.
Cut.
Cut.
Why didn't you cry?
It came naturally.
Looking at the sea,
I understood the meaning
of what my voice was saying.
You'll see in the editing room,
but I think that last take is best.
Good evening, Madam.
I received your message.
I just arrived myself.
Come in.
This is Luca, Pilar and Caterina.
This French lady
is a friend of Vasco's.
I need to talk to her.
Please go play outside.
I'd like Vasco to stay with us.
Then only his cousins will leave.
May I offer you something?
Coffee?
No, thank you.
Let's sit down.
We spoke about Vasco's future.
Yes.
I said I'd contact
some people in France.
Yes.
I tried.
I called them.
And?
I haven't heard back yet.
But I have another idea.
Yes?
I propose to take Vasco to France
for summer vacation.
And after a certain time,
if it suits him...
to adopt him myself.
You, Madam?
Yes.
Do you have a husband?
No.
But in France many families
begin with a mother and a child.
I believe you are a good person.
If Vasco wants to go on vacation
with you, I have no objection.
And afterwards?
If you both desire it, I see
no obstacle to you adopting him.
Thank you.
Vasco, did you understand
what we said?
Yes, Madam.
Would you like
to come to France with me?
Yes, Madam.
Are you leaving tomorrow?
No.
A bit later, so we can get organised.
Would you like to come for a walk?
Yes.
Where do you live in France?
Paris.
That's where
Madalena's husband lives.
We'll invite him over.
What's Paris like?
It's even bigger than Lisbon,
and very beautiful.
Our house is near a garden
called the Luxembourg.
What will I do in Paris?
Live your childhood.
I'll try to make it a happy one.
I'll teach you French.
When summer's over,
you'll begin school.
You see...
I found you again in the same life.
Destiny wanted you to be quick.
Last night, I never imagined
you had a child.
Last night, I didn't have one.
So you were quick too.
You know, what you said last night...
About what?
That I was a reincarnation
of D. Sebastiao...
Yes?
I thought it over.
I think you're right.
Good.
I live nearby.
Close to the river.
Yes.
So you won't have to rise too early
when you appear
on your white horse
on the banks of the Tagus.
Yes, I thought of that.
Where do you live?
Far away.
And I'm going back soon.
With Vasco.
So we shall not meet again.
Who knows?
Couldn't you give me your card?
Our meeting today is a sign.
If we meet a third time,
without you knowing my name,
I will truly believe
it is destiny's will.
Why three times, and not two?
It's always three times in stories.
What will the next time mean?
Maybe that you are
the great love of my life.
But you're going far,
and D. Sebastiao
must appear in Lisbon.
I think today
he can appear somewhere else.
Promise me if we meet a third time,
you'll tell me your name.
I promise.
And if I tell you my name,
I will be yours.
I believe you.
I'm a witness.
This beautiful city, Vasco,
is yours.
I hope one day,
when you return to your city,
you will know how to love.
Who will I love?
Those who are close to you,
those who are close to them...
And finally,
all that is not you.
I will love all that is not me?
Yes.
And then you will find joy.
Who will love me?
Everything you love will love you.
You say beautiful things, Madam.
You don't need to call me Madam
anymore.
All right.
What shall I call you?
Call me "maman".
You see!
That's your first French word.