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Tabu

Name: Tabu
Director: Miguel Gomes
Released: 2012
Duration: 120 min

Representation Score

4.7/10

Fair

2012

Director

Miguel Gomes

Runtime

120 minutes

Average Rating

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New Showbiz Analysis

Miguel Gomes uses a sophisticated, non-linear structure to explore colonial legacies and traditional storytelling. The film succeeds by centering the experiences of women and interracial relationships, which challenge conventional hierarchies found in period dramas. By using the aesthetics of classical melodrama, the work critiques the very history those genres often romanticize. It examines the systemic tensions and power dynamics inherent in the colonial project. While the film excels in racial and gendered deconstruction, it lacks representation for LGBTQ+ identities or non-assuming gender matches what was assigned at birth characters and does not include characters with disabilities.

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Category Breakdown

Does Tabu have LGBTQ+ representation?

Minimal

The film focuses on heterosexual relationships in two different time periods. It does not depict any non-cisgender identities or same-sex relationships.

How does Tabu portray gender?

Good

The story centers on the experiences and desires of women. By emphasizing the internal lives of women, the film challenges traditional male-dominated historical narratives.

How racially and ethnically diverse is Tabu?

Excellent

The film deconstructs the colonial perspective through an interracial romance between a white woman and a Black man. This central relationship challenges the rigid racial hierarchies of the time.

How does Tabu represent religion and culture?

Excellent

The story critiques Western colonial history and the Portuguese colonial project. Using a postmodern structure, it dismantles the romanticized melodrama often associated with the colonial era.

Does Tabu include disability representation?

Minimal

There are no prominent depictions of visible or invisible disabilities that serve as central plot drivers in the narrative.

Present on Screen

Effective deconstruction of the colonial perspective through an interracial romance.
Strong focus on the internal lives and experiences of women.
Sophisticated critique of Western colonial history and imperial power dynamics.

Limited or Absent

Lack of representation for LGBTQ+ identities or non-assuming gender matches what was assigned at birth characters.
Absence of characters with visible or invisible disabilities.

Official Synopsis

Lisbon, Portugal, 2010. Pilar, a pious woman devoted to social causes, maintains a peculiar relationship with her neighbor Aurora, a temperamental old woman obsessed with gambling who lives tormented by a mysterious past.

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