''O Pátio das Cantigas'' (in English, ''The Courtyard of Songs'') is a

Portuguese Portuguese may refer to: * anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Portugal ** Portuguese cuisine, traditional foods ** Portuguese language, a Romance language *** Portuguese dialects, variants of the Portuguese language ** Portu ...

film from 1942, directed by

Francisco Ribeiro : ''For other uses, see Ribeirinho''. Francisco Ribeiro (15 March 1965 – 14 September 2010) was a Portuguese cellist, composer, lyricist, vocalist, arranger and record producer. He was born and died in Lisbon, Portugal. Ribeiro is best known ...

, "Ribeirinho", that takes place in a typical

Lisbon Lisbon (; pt, Lisboa ) is the capital and largest city of Portugal, with an estimated population of 544,851 within its administrative limits in an area of 100.05 km2. Grande Lisboa, Lisbon's urban area extends beyond the city's administr ...

neighbourhood during the Popular Saints festivals, through a maze of misunderstandings and innuendos, with

Vasco Santana Vasco Santana (full name: ''Vasco António Rodrigues Santana''; 28 January 1898 in Lisbon – 13 June 1958) was a Portuguese actor, one of the most renowned of the classical era of Portuguese cinema. He already had a long career in theatre ...

, António Silva,

Laura Alves Laura Alves (8 September 1921 – 7 May 1986) was a Portuguese actor on stage, film and radio. Early life Laura Alves Magno was born in Lisbon, Portugal on 8 September 1921, the daughter of Mariana Alves and Celestino Magno. She attended the Mac ...

and Ribeiro. The film also stars António Silva,

António Vilar António Vilar (October 31, 1912 – August 16, 1995) was a Portuguese actor who worked in Spanish cinema as well as appearing in at least one French film and in one Italian film. He also acted in Portuguese cinema Selected filmography *''O p� ...

, Armando Chagas, Barroso Lopes, Carlos Alves,

Carlos Otero Carlos Otero (1916–1979) was a Portuguese film and television actor. He was married to the actress Isabel de Castro.Goble p.6 Selected filmography * '' Criminal Brigade'' (1950) * ''Under the Skies of the Asturias'' (1951) * ''Persecution in ...

, Eliezer Kamenesky, Francisco de Castro, Graça Maria, Maria da Graça and Maria das Neves. One of the most beloved comedies of the ''

comédia à portuguesa ''Comédia à portuguesa'' (; Portuguese Comedy) is a term conventionally used to refer to the genre of popular Portuguese film comedies made in the 1930s and 1940s. The light-hearted comedies are predominantly set in petit-bourgeois milieus in tr ...

'', ''O Pátio das Cantigas'' represents the convergence of top talent of the time, most notably Ribeirinho who directed, his brother,

António Lopes Ribeiro António Filipe Lopes Ribeiro (16 April 1908 in Lisbon – 1995) was a Portuguese film director. Son of Manuel Henrique Correia da Silva Ribeiro and wife Ester da Nazaré Lopes, he was the older brother of actor Ribeirinho. Filmography *''D ...

who produced and, joining both brothers on the writing credits,

. It was the first these three stars worked together and also the only film directed by Ribeirinho. The script is based upon a set game of witty dialogues rife with innuendo and "double entendres", that admirably captured the atmosphere of a Lisbon neighbourhood and popular through the Saints celebrations, from a set of archetypical characters, meddling in their quarrels, confrontations and ambitions.

Plot

In a typical Lisbon "pátio", or courtyard, by the Popular Saints festivals, a handful of plain people live their day-to-day, their dreams, disappointments, passions, jealousies and joys in an almost enchanted atmosphere. Alfredo is a good lad whose brother Carlos, flirts with frivolous Amália. Her sister, Suzana, is in turn in love with Alfredo. Narciso, Rufino's father and his partner in the neighbourhoods café, is a chronic drunkard and a guitar virtuoso. Rosa, a merry widow that sells flowers, is in turn courted by Narciso and by the unpleasant and arrogant Evaristo, the grocer, father to envious and spoiled Celeste. The rivalry between Narciso and Evaristo reaches its height in a dance night at the courtyard that ends in a veritable camp battle. At long last all is settled between the several loving couples and life goes on serenely in the courtyard.

Popular culture

Some gags became household references, the teasing of António Silva with "Evaristo, tens cá disto?".

References

O Pátio das Cantigas
at ''Amor de Perdição''.

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Patio das Cantigas 1940s Portuguese-language films Portuguese black-and-white films 1942 films Films directed by Francisco Ribeiro Portuguese musical comedy films 1942 musical comedy films