''The Policewoman'' ( pt, Mulher Polícia) is an independent Portuguese drama film directed by Joaquim Sapinho, produced at Rosa Filmes, which had its world premiere in 2003 at the Berlin International Film Festival.

Plot

The film tells the story of a mother and a son from the interior of Portugal that run away to

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 ...

to avoid being separated by the state institutions that want to take the child away from the mother.

Cast

* Amélia Corôa as Tânia * Luduvic Vieira as Rato * Maria Silva as Liliana * Vítor Norte as the Truck Driver * Ana Nave as the Policewoman

Production

''The Policewoman'' was shot in and around Sabugal, Portugal, Sapinho's birthplace. Released in 2003, ''The Policewoman'' was shot while Sapinho was in the editing process of his feature documentary ''Bosnia Diaries'', which was filmed a couple of years earlier in

Bosnia Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sh, / , ), abbreviated BiH () or B&H, sometimes called Bosnia–Herzegovina and often known informally as Bosnia, is a country at the crossroads of south and southeast Europe, located in the Balkans. Bosnia and He ...

during the Yugoslav Wars. ''Bosnia Diaries'' would eventually be released in 2005. The two films were post-produced simultaneously, influencing each other both in style and theme. The darkness, realism and harshness of ''The Policewoman'' clearly echoes the

Bosnian War The Bosnian War ( sh, Rat u Bosni i Hercegovini / Рат у Босни и Херцеговини) was an international armed conflict that took place in Bosnia and Herzegovina between 1992 and 1995. The war is commonly seen as having started ...

experienced by Sapinho. That experience of war would cause a great change to his vision of the world, leading him, when shooting ''The Policewoman'', to discover in Portugal things he thought had only happened in Bosnia in consequence of the war. It made him realize that, after all, they were also happening in his native town in consequence of the economic transformations imposed by capitalism via the European Union.

Reception

Besides having had its world premiere in 2003, at the Berlin International Film Festival, ''The Policewoman'' was part of the official selection of innumerous film festivals, like the

Edinburgh Film Festival The Edinburgh International Film Festival (EIFF) is a film festival that runs for two weeks in June each year. Established in 1947, it is the world's oldest continually running film festival. EIFF presents both UK and international films (all ti ...

or the Pusan Film Festival. Received in the Lecce European Film Festival the award for Best Film and Best Photography.Infos at rosafilmes.pt
click on "''ENG''", then on "''DIRECTORS''", then on "''JOAQUIM SAPINHO''"

References

External links

The Policewoman official page at Rosa Filmes web site
(click on "ENG", then on "DIRECTORS", then on "JOAQUIM SAPINHO", then on "THE POLICE WOMAN") * {{DEFAULTSORT:Policewoman Portuguese drama films 2000s Portuguese-language films 2003 films Films directed by Joaquim Sapinho Films set in Portugal Films shot in Portugal 2003 drama films