"Torre Bela"
Dokumentationsfilm, Portugal, 1975
mit einem Impulsvortrag von Andreas Hellbert
Regie:
Thomas Harlan und Jacques d´Arthuys
Inhalt:
The rise and fall of a revolutionary cooperative movement established in a large private farm in Ribatejo, Portugal, from March to December 1975 (most part of the land occupations occurred in Alentejo, promoted by the communist party). In direct speech, sometimes to the camera, sometimes among themselves, the uneducated rural workers expose their misery, their suffering, their hopes, and ultimately their despair - when a socialist government orders the restitution of the land to their primitive owners, and these transform the land into a hunting reserve.
The original version prepared for the 1976 Cannes Film Festival and eventually not shown was 240 minutes. After extensive editing by Roberto Perpignani it was reduced to 139 minutes and shown out of competition at the 1977 Cannes Film Festival.
The director further edited the film to the 117 minutes that had limited distribution at trade union and political meetings in Portugal, Montréal (Canada), Pesaro (Italy) and NYC (USA).
The so called Portuguese version for theatrical distribution was re-cut to 105 minutes.