Edward, a thirty-year-old American who never knew his parents, discovers one day, following a DNA test, that he has family in Portugal: his biological mother, Amelia, and a twin brother.
After contacting the latter, he accepts the invitation to visit them in their old home, isolated in the Lusitano forest, in the company of his girlfriend, Ryley.
But after a warm reunion, she begins to notice that something is wrong with her hosts...
Selected at the recent Gérardmer Fantastic Film Festival, “Amelia’s Children” won one of the two jury prizes.
A distinction that rewards the honest craftsmanship of a young filmmaker, also torn between two worlds, since he is American-Portuguese.
An asset for exploiting a story of family secrets, full of decadence and which veers into old-fashioned fantasy.
Far from the postcards of Lisbon or the Algarve
But by employing very modern elements, such as this judicious use of DNA analyzes which kick-start the whole intrigue.
This takes place in a setting rarely seen here, deep Portugal, far from the postcards of Lisbon or the Algarve.
And the fact that the danger for the protagonists comes from one of them's own family remains a particularly effective concept.
There remain a few pitfalls that the filmmaker was unable to avoid.
Starting with a small lack of characterization of the character of Edward, nice at the beginning, then quickly neglected to move into the background, in favor of Ryley, the only one to move the story forward.
Let's also overlook the fact that Edward, despite the joy of finding his family, doesn't even take the trouble to learn the slightest word of Portuguese before arriving at her house.
And then, for fans of fantasy, the problem with “Amelia’s Children” is undoubtedly that it arrives barely three years after a Spanish film, “Abuela”, with a similar theme, and much scarier…
Editor's note:
3.5/5
"Amelia's Children",
Portuguese fantasy film by Gabriel Abrantes, with Brigette Lundy-Paine, Carloto Cotta, Anabela Moreira, Alba Baptista… (1h32).