''Manoel's Destinies'' (; Portuguese: ''Os Destinos de Manuel'') is a 1984/1985 French-Portuguese

children's A child () is a human being between the stages of birth and puberty, or between the developmental period of infancy and puberty. The term may also refer to an unborn human being. In English-speaking countries, the legal definition of ''child ...

fantasy film Fantasy films are films that belong to the fantasy genre with fantastic themes, usually Magic (paranormal), magic, supernatural events, mythology, folklore, or exotic fantasy worlds. The Film genre, genre is considered a form of speculative fic ...

directed by Chilean filmmaker Raúl Ruiz. It was shot on

16 mm film 16 mm film is a historically popular and economical Film gauge, gauge of Photographic film, film. 16 mm refers to the width of the film (about inch); other common film gauges include 8 mm film, 8 mm and 35mm movie film, 35 mm. It ...

, a co-production of Les Films du Passage, Rita Filmes, and RTP, in association with Revcom Télévision.

Versions

There are multiple versions of this work. Most commonly available is the 1984 French-dubbed TV

miniseries In the United States, a miniseries or mini-series is a television show or series that tells a story in a predetermined, limited number of episodes. Many miniseries can also be referred to, and shown, as a television film. " Limited series" is ...

that was broadcast in three episodes under the title ''L'Île aux merveilles de Manoël'' (roughly 150 minutes). The Portuguese-language version was broadcast as four episodes under the title ''Aventure au Madeira''. Film festival programmes have listed it under different titles, such as ''Manuel de l’île des merveilles'' or ''Manuel na Ilha das Maravilhas''. ''Manuel de l’île des merveilles'' first screened on 1 February 1985 at the

International Film Festival Rotterdam International Film Festival Rotterdam (IFFR) is an annual film festival held at the end of January in various locations in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, focused on independent and experimental films. The inaugural festival took place in June 1972, ...

, winning the KNF Award.

Jonathan Rosenbaum Jonathan Rosenbaum (born February 27, 1943) is an American film critic and author. Rosenbaum was the head film critic for '' The Chicago Reader'' from 1987 to 2008. He has published and edited numerous books about cinema and has contributed to ...

, one of the film's champions, described it as "three 50-minute episodes". It was screened later in the same month at the "International Forum" at the

Berlin International Film Festival The Berlin International Film Festival (), usually called the Berlinale (), is an annual film festival held in Berlin, Germany. Founded in 1951 and originally run in June, the festival has been held every February since 1978 and is one of Europ ...

. A two-hour cut under the title ''Les Destins de Manoel'' screened in May 1985 at the

Cannes Film Festival The Cannes Film Festival (; ), until 2003 called the International Film Festival ('), is the most prestigious film festival in the world. Held in Cannes, France, it previews new films of all genres, including documentaries, from all around ...

as part of "Perspectives du cinéma français". In 2013, the Cinemateca Portuguesa screened the 138-minute Portuguese-language version. In 2024, they screened under the title ''Les Destins de Manoel / Os Destinos de Manuel'' a digital copy of the complete and commercially unreleased 170-minute Portuguese-language version that they hold.

Parts

It is divided into three parts: * "Os Destinos de Manuel" / "Les Destins de Manoel" * "O Piquenique dos Sonhos" / "Le Pique-nique des rêves" * "A Pequena Campeã de Xadrez" / "La Petite Championne d'échecs" The fourth episode of the Portuguese TV miniseries was titled "Tragédia Maderense".

Cast

* Ruben de Freitas as Manoel (7yo) * Teresa Madruga as Manoel's Mother * Fernando Heitor as Manoel's Father * Marco Paulo de Freitas as Manoel (13yo) * Diogo Dória as Captain Araujo * Cecília Guimarães * Vasco Pimentel * José de Freitas * Aurélie Chazelle * Miguel Silva * Pedro M. Ruivo

References

External links

* 1984 films 1984 fantasy films 1980s French-language films French fantasy films Films directed by Raúl Ruiz Films produced by Paulo Branco French avant-garde and experimental films 1980s avant-garde and experimental films 1980s French films Films scored by Jorge Arriagada {{fantasy-film-stub

Versions

Parts

Cast

Further reading

References

External links