THE FLAME OF A CANDLE

In a green-tiled house on the outskirts of Porto, a lady and her maid have lived together for 60 years, surrounded by the traces of past lives. Inspired by his own grandmother’s story, André Gil Mata sculpts an absorbing chamber piece that navigates the domestic space of silence and confinement, dismantling the partitions of memory that keep both women imprisoned, while offering a glimpse into a decade of their lives in each room. The Portuguese director, trained under the watchful eye of Béla Tarr, inherits the Hungarian master’s refined sense of tempo and sustained camera movements, which glide through the corridors of an eery home, witness to cyclical routines. Frederico Lobo’s photography highlights the sombre tones, and the editing by Claire Atherton (Chantal Akerman’s usual accomplice) marks the solemn and iterative passing of the hours.