Tabu

The 1960s African segment unfolds under the shadow of the Portuguese Colonial War, with Aurora's farm, hunter skills, and a forbidden love affair. In present-day Lisbon, the same characters confront memory, rumor, and unresolved guilt as Pilar seeks out a vanished love and Aurora's past comes to light. The chronology moves between a colonial past and a contemporary space, using time to explore guilt and reconciliation.

Three disparate lives unfold in Lisbon's old building, where three women live, and flashbacks take us to Aurora's tea farm on the slopes of Mount Tabu in Africa. The setting shifts between present-day urban interiors and the African frontier, echoing themes of isolation and danger. Later, the narrative traces travels to India and back to Lisbon, linking places through memory and legend.

🕊️ Guilt and Secrets

The narrative threads guilt across generations, anchored by Aurora's murder of Mario and its careful cover-up. The legend-opening frames memory as something passed down through stories that never fully heal. The film uses intimate female relationships to reveal how silence sustains or unmasks hidden truths.

🗺️ Colonial History

Aurora's life on a tea farm in Africa unfolds against the violence of the colonial war in Mozambique. The murder and affair are intertwined with political manipulation, showing how personal passions become entangled with empire. The backdrop critiques how colonial power corrupts morality and memory.

🤝 Female Solidarity

Three women share a Lisbon apartment, navigating loneliness, superstition, and desire. Pilar, Aurora, and Santa form a complex web of care, secrecy, and resistance to isolation. Their interactions reveal resilience and moral complexity in the face of danger and gossip.

📜 Legend and Memory

The film opens with a legend told by Miguel Gomes, framing the narrative as a tale where myth and memoir blur. The crocodile, river, and Aurora's hidden story function as living folklore that questions truth. The storytelling style oscillates between documentary-like observation and lyrical, mythic register.