April in Portugal (film)

April in Portugal
Directed by	Euan Lloyd
Written by	O. Henry Charles Belden
Produced by	Irving Allen Albert R. Broccoli
Starring	Trevor Howard Jocelyn Lane Amalia Rodrigues
Cinematography	Ted Moore
Music by	George Melachrino
Production company	Warwick Films
Distributed by	Columbia Pictures
Release date	20 April 1956 (1956-04-20) (U.S.)
Running time	20 minutes
Country	United Kingdom
Language	English

April in Portugal is a 1954 travel film directed by Euan Lloyd, starring Jocelyn Lane and narrated by Trevor Howard. It was released in 1956.

Cast

• Jocelyn Lane as guide (as Jackie Lane)
• Antonio Dos Santos
• Amália Rodrigues
• Trevor Howard as narrator
• Fernando Gil and his Ballet
• Santos Moreira

Reception

The Monthly Film Bulletin wrote: "This brief visit to Portugal is given the customary CinemaScopic treatment, and, in its effort to reveal the varied splendours of Lisbon, succeeds in telling us very little. Miss Jackie Lane, the film's guide (who wears a different creation in almost every shot) is accompanied by a smiling bullfighter, Antonio dos Santos, and a fulsome commentary delivered by Trevor Howard. The fudos singer, Amalia Rodrigues, renders several well-known songs – one of which, sung from a yacht on the Tagus, suddenly suggests that the film has taken to parodying itself – a folk dance team perform a few steps, a military parade is held in honour of the President of Brazil, and Antonio himself provides the climax shot at a Portuguese bull-fight. These, and sundry other events, are photographed in bright glossy colours, and the title tune is played, in a rich stercophonic arrangement, by George Melachrino's Orchestra. A chromium-piied travelogue which, nevertheless, wears a decidedly old-fashioned look."

External links

• April in Portugal at IMDb