Os Imortais (2003) Online

"Os Imortais" is without a doubt one of the best, or probably, the best Portuguese film ever made. It certainly is a landmark on the Portuguese cinema's scene; this movie his worth every minute.

Every year, four ex-soldiers that call themselves "Os Imortais" (translated "The Immortals"), get together with four women to celebrate war deeds and to remember the old days, back in the war. On the summer of 1985, tired of their monotonous lives they decide to rob a bank. Joaquim Malarranha, a chief inspector from the local police about to retire, crosses their path and will spend his last days of duty trying to solve the robbery. But has he carries on with his investigation, he discovers more than he could ever think of.

A movie that focuses on strange and disturbing actions of ex-soldiers on their attempt to fit in the modern society and to mend errors committed in the past, and on a veteran cop who's about to leave his working-life behind.

João Pedro de Vasconcelos managed to assemble a cast with vast qualities; it's a pleasure to watch Nicolau Breyner's performance. The story is very solid and can really catch the viewer's attention; it keeps the anxiety of knowing what really happened during the robbery and the days that followed it.

"A bandit always forgets that there is, at least, another bandit smarter than him."

Well, this is just an excellent movie from Vasconcellos. The characters are very well worked out, the actors are very good, especially Unas and Breyner. Towards the middle the film seems to become a little slow, but drama soon picks up again until the end.

The exorcism of the African colonial war, where about one million Portuguese fought in the sixties and early seventies, is yet to be completed, but no doubt this film is an important contribution to the process. It depicts whit dark humor, disenchantment and a strange sadness the difficult lives that virtually all Portuguese had in the years after the war: those who fought in Africa; their relatives and friends in Europe; and those who lived in the colonies and had to return.

For me, Os Imortais is one of the best Portuguese movies of all time and one of the best movies of 2003 in the world. The cast is excellent and António Pedro Vasconcelos does an amazing jog.

Nicolau Breyner reveals himself as a fantastic drama-actor (much better than in his comedy roles). Emmanuelle Seigner shows us a great performance (great as the Ninth Gate one) and Rogério Samora and Joaquim de Almeida reassured that they are two of the best Portuguese actors ever. Rui Unas, the surprise (he is a famous TV talk-show host), gives us a remarkable Vítor Pratas with a great sense of humor. And with minor-roles occupied by actresses with the quality of Alexandra Lencastre and Maria Rueff, this movie surely proves that Portugal can make excellent cinema.

If you see this movie, rent it or buy it and you'll see it's money well spent.

I recommend this must-see to everyone who likes good movies, rather than popcorn American movies.

Great director... Great cast... Great script... Great photography...

A great portuguese movie, with a great cast. Nicolau Breyner at his best. the movie turns around 4 ex-war soldiers, that, after returning home have to find something to do with their lifes. and what better thing to do than rob a bank after a trip to Algarve holiday´s paradise. Some good action and a quiet few scenes of hot sex !! A must...

I love the movies by the Cohen, and this great portuguese movie just reminded me of them. Why? You know that amazing feature of the Cohen's movies... to pick up or write a story, create a "carpet" (not Dude's one...!) and then put all sort of characters in it, each one unique, each one amazing... In "Os Imortais" that also happens and it's great how all those unique characters deal with each other. Very nice movie, indeed.

With a big, big cast, full of famous portuguese actors, Vasconcelos goes back to the crime and shows us a country in the mid 80's, ready to begin looking forward but still too much attached to its memories of war in Africa. 5 bad men from the army return to Portugal, but they're not yet ready to fit he social scheme, and so start to get involved with drug dealing, arms, and a lot of bruises to women. One inspector, at the end of his career, will be the only one to get close to the truth... but will he get there in time? A movie that brilliantly uses a past of TV images to tell parts of the story and a movie that reflects the cinema in Portugal, placing the past each time more in the past.

Fantastic Portuguese movie. One of the best ever made in my country. Congratulations to the director António-Pedro Vasconcelos that made his lifetime masterpiece, i think, and to a fabulous cast. Nicolau Breyner and Paula Mora at their best.

Breyner proved to be one of the best Portuguese actors of all time.

I've also liked the performance of Rui Unas. It was a surprise due to that it was is debut in the film industry.

A small detail in the film caught my attention: In the jacket of inspector Malarranha was a small pin of SL Benfica that is a very big soccer club in Portugal and that the director is a big fan, and so am I :).

With this film quality people will come more to the movies to see Portuguese films, for sure.

"Os Imortais" is indeed a very competently made heist movie that brings together a consistent cast and a captivating story. It deals with the inability of war veterans to resume their old life after they've been trained to discard their emotions and act like killing machines only to be later unable to readapt to their old life. Crime becomes the only thing they can be good at and they reconvene their old group for a robbery. Sadly, despite some very effective scenes near the end, this human aspects take a back seat to the investigational thriller it mostly is. The casting managed to fit in the same movie a wide array of well known Portuguese (and not only since Polanski's wife Emanuelle Seigner also stars) actors and TV personalities ranging from the extremely successful Joaquim de Almeida and Nicolau Breyner to up and coming young comedians like Maria Rueff, Carla Salgueiro and Rui Unas playing against character. Certainly worth a view or two.

A movie with a vast of well known Portuguese actors, some are good others nor really because Portugal have a lack of good actors/actresses. But the best actors are there, and the history is actually good. This movies is based on a history of a 4 men that were combatants on the colonial war and doesn't fit in in our society, because it's too boring for them. In the vacation in Algarve, that bring the old friends of the war together they decide to stole a bank, but only an almost reformed cop is the smarter enough to figure out the all story, while the younger cop is pathetic. The rest you'll have to see the movie, if you can buy the DVD I assure you it's money well spent.

Hi.

"Os Imortais", a masterpiece from Vasconcelos, places him as one of the most brilliant portuguese film directors. Rui Unas performs a nice surprise on this movie. A not-so-young all-in-one actor, is "Vitor Pratas", the last imortal. And another actor, Nicolau Breyner, plays perhaps the best cinema paper on his career.

A "must see"!

Normally when you see a movie of which you had read the book you get disappointed, because the movie cannot contain everything that the book has, although in this case that doesn't happen cause the movie is not just an attempt of put into a movie the story of the book, it really is more than just that, if you read the book you'll see that there are many many different changes from the story of the book to the movie, its almost like you've read a book that contains the same characters but in a somehow different story, so that's the first reason why I think this is a really good movie, but there are others, like the great screen play, the really good cast and others, although I think that the adaptation of the story is really good.