Dao

Was this a documentary after all? The question comes to mind several times while watching Dao. The life unfolding before the camera is more essential than the narrative. Just as the film drifts between fiction and documentary, its story also intertwines different layers of time, past and present, the world of the living and the realm of the dead. The title “Dao” refers to the Taoist concept of the primordial force from which all things originate and to which they ultimately return. The viewer is invited to participate in two ceremonies of life and death: the wedding of the protagonist Gloria’s (Katy Correa) daughter in France, and the memorial ceremony of her deceased father in Guinea-Bissau, attended by an extended family. The settings are very different, but a living connection is created between the two worlds. At the centre of everything is family and traditions.

Dao possesses the emotional authenticity of lived experience. Director Gomes has spoken of channeling his own experiences into the film, while simultaneously embracing a collaborative creative process. There is room for improvisation, yet the result never feels uneven.

It finds a harmonious balance between history and the present, the living and the dead, and the different countries. Its three-hour running time allows for time and space to avoid narrative shortcuts. Dao pulses with joy and resonates.

Hilla Okkonen (translated by Mira Liimatainen)