Anton Yelchin, the Russian-American star of franchises such as Star Trek, died tragically in an accident at just 27 years old. With his hoarse voice and eyes that bore into you, he gives a staggeringly intense performance as Jake, an American adrift at the centre of Porto. Equally as impressive is his scene partner Lucie Lucas as a French archeologist, another outsider. Porto explores a kind of love triangle, with the relationship between the experienced woman and nervous man at its centre. In the background, the cinematic millieus of the titular old Portuguese town breathe life and intrigue into the story. The film follows in the footsteps of Manoel de Oliveira, grand old man of Portuguese cinema and previous guest of Sodankylä, who captured the titular city on film long ago. Klinger more than holds his own in this prestigious company: Porto is an engaging, pulsing and captivating work. The writer-director-editor’s skill at handling his medium and his performers is evident in the film’s scorching cinematography, music and characters alike.
Porto is a sexy film, not just in its depiction of sexuality. Through a dense atmosphere and long shots, Klinger achieves an almost music video-like tension between sparse elements that holds for the entirety of the narrative. When Porto moves in between chronological stages of its central romance, simplicity meets sensual fluidity in a beautiful blues.
Timo Malmi