Sefarad (2019)

This sumptuous and absorbing historical drama recounts the story of the Jews in Portugal since 1496, when King D. Manuel prohibited Judaism. Officially the Jewish community disappears, although in many villages Crypto-Judaism is kept alive. It is not until the end of the Inquisition in the nineteenth century that the Jews slowly begin to return to Portugal. A small community of Ashkenazi Jews settles in Oporto, and these are joined by a Portuguese military officer converted to Judaism, who soon begins to travel, sometimes on horseback, seeking to bring back to official Judaism those who practise crypto-Judaism. This project, although heroic, does not have the desired outcome. But five centuries after D. Manuel’s edict led to the mass exodus of the Jewish community, a new law promoted their return to the land they had been forced to forsake. With a sweeping look, Sepharad is a timely film that will make you reflect on the true worth of faith, love, and selfless valor.