Amílcar

Poet, agricultural engineer and revolutionary Amílcar Cabral was born in Guinea-Bissau to Cape Verdean parents. After studying in Portugal, he emerged as the charismatic leader of the anti-colonial struggle against Portuguese rule. With his utopian ideas, he sparked a cultural and an armed uprising that went on to inspire other African liberation movements.

His poetry, letters to his two successive wives, and political pamphlets form the basis of a journal-like film narrative. Associative atmospheric images with a charged soundtrack are interwoven with police reports and archival footage. A layered portrait gradually emerges of a visionary who could be both diplomatic and ruthless.

As the dream of a free Guinea-Bissau and unity with Cape Verde draws ever closer, the threat also increases, not only from the Portuguese army and secret service, but also from undermining forces within Cabral’s own party. This culminates in the question: who was behind his assassination in 1973? A portrait encompassing interracial love, ambition, terror and betrayal.