by Rebecca Flint Marx
synopsis
Ebullient drag queens do battle with repressive police in The Heart's Root, a fantastical film set in Lisbon. The city's protector, Saint Anthony, is the patron saint of lovers and also the inspiration behind "the brides of St. Anthony," a group of transvestites that dances through the city's streets in the name of freedom and liberation. They are threatened by Cato (Luis Miguel Cintra), a self-serving mayoral candidate who pines in unrequited love for Silvia (Joana Barcia), a friend of the aforementioned transvestites and protege of the formidable madam of one of Lisbon's brothels. Meditations on pornography, religion, fascism, and sex abound.
