
Fernando Pessoa, one of the greatest writers in Portuguese, created an immense parallel world and several heteronyms so as to endure the loneliness of genius. José Saramago, 1998 Nobel Laureate in Literature, has a heteronym, Ricardo Reis, return to Portugal after a 16-year exile in Brazil. 1936 is a perilous year with Mussolini’s fascism, Hitler’s Nazism, Spain’s Civil War and Salazar’s New State in Portugal. And Fernando Pessoa meets his creation, Reis. Two women, Lídia and Marcenda, are Reis’ carnal and impossible passions. “Life and Death as one” allows for literature and cinema.

as Ricardo Reis

as Marcenda

as Lídia

as Fernando Pessoa

as Colega Dirigente

as Victor

as Vizinha 1

as Vizinha 2

as Rámon

as Velho 1

as Dirigente Sindical

as Doctor

as Polícia

as Orador

as António Lopes Ribeiro

as Motorista

as Gerente Salvador

as Director-Adjunto

as Dr. Sampaio

as Carlota

as Bagageiro

as Empregado Martinho

as Velho 2

as Revisor

as Viúva

as Filha

as Voz da Rádio (voice)