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It's funny watching the elements come together in this complicated scam. On one hand, the set-up isn't quite as complex as it seems, but there's an easy sense of fun in every exchange.

The best films of this genre always show a path and provide a takeaway for being a better person.

Carnation Revolution is one of the most beautiful chapters of World History in the XXth century and Portuguese movie "April Captains"matches it. Maria de Medeiros's movie is beautifully filmed. Cinematography is amazing, with great frames, both aesthetically and creatively. Besides a brutal opening and some other violent situations such as the one inside the public bathroom and a "Full Metal Jacket"-style scene, there are also many funny moments. Off course one cannot help but becoming touched as people are shown supporting freedom. The image of people putting carnation flowers in the barrel of the guns, which gave the name to the revolution, is also shown. "Grândola Vila Morena" song was an anthem for revolutionaries and it is heard many times during the whole film. Italian actor Stefano Accorsi and French actor Frédéric Pierrot are great in the leading roles. Both for its content and for its artistic realization, "Capitães de Abril" is a film to make all the Portuguese people proud.

The events that led to the elimination of the long and cruel dictatorship of Salazar in Portugal in April of 1974, are examined in this ambitious film directed by actress Maria de Medeiros. The screen play is a collaboration by Ms. de Medeiros and Eve Deboise. The story is both women's interpretation of what occurred in the country since the director was only 9 years old that fateful April.The film pays tribute to the men that plotted the coup and the way they conducted themselves throughout the ordeal. The "Carnation Revolution", as it was baptized by the media, was an example restraint as there was no bloodshed during the days when it was happening, or in the days following, which brought Portugal to a democracy that had been denied to its citizens by a cruel dictator.The main point of contention with the military men in charge of the coup was to correct the abuses Portugal had inflicted in the colonies in Africa, where they had been responsible for the deaths of countless of natives that wanted to get rid of the invaders. At the same time, many of Portuguese soldiers died during the wars that were waged overseas.The basic problem with the story, the way it's told on the screen, is a weak screen play that doesn't fully make sense of most of what the viewer is watching. If the viewer doesn't have a certain background about what is going on, he will be lost by what the writers of the picture decided to focus the action on. There is also a problem with the action, which at times, has a flat feeling to it that renders some moments as static and meaningless.This film will resonate with Portuguese, of course, because it marked the beginning of the actual democracy. Maria de Medeiros should have served the film better either by staying behind the camera, or letting some other director be in command. Stefano Accorsi, a fine Italian actor, is the best thing in the film as Maia. Joaquim de Almeida's Gervasio is a puzzle at best. When we first meet him, he appears to be in favor of the uprising, then changes his mind, only to come back on board again. This duality in his character doesn't help in the over all narrative. The same go for Frederic Pierrot, who plays Manuel, Antonia's husband. Fele Martinez, the Spanish actor, has little to do.While the film is entertaining, another treatment for the story would have made a better and stronger movie. One wishes Maria de Medeiros to succeed. Perhaps the next time she will be better prepared to give her viewers a tighter and more controlled story.

A true story about a true revolution, 25 of April ; a revolution against a repressive regime of 41 years, that was imposing a colonial war on it's military's, for maintaining an empire (Angola, Mozambique, Guine-Bissau, Cabo Verde, S. Tomé e Principe; the first and the last of the great colonial empire's of Europe) of 600 years, since it's beginning in the conquest of Ceuta in 1415; a revolution by the army for the people, and for a democratic Portugal; the most's surprising fact in this revolution is that it were no people killed in it (except those that died in the hand's of PIDE, the political police of the State, during a brutal gunfire against an unarmed crowd protesting in front of it's headquarters in the day of the revolution, in 25 of April 1974, has it show's on the film).And has all revolutions it has it's heroes, one them of was Captain Salgueiro Maia, a returned soldier from the war, whose convictions along with the rest of the army, was that they were fighting (since 1961) a hopeless war, and that sometimes a soldier has to disobey it's country.

Principally it is the story of two men who were part of the Portuguese revolution. It was easy to understand the contest, but usually directors starts from a historical fact to speak about something else, or they shows also the period before or after this fact, here everything happen during that couple of days when the revolution acts. It could also be seen as a kind of documentary. The movie focalize to these two people, showing as normal they were, not like common heroes, because the revolution come from people. Although it was made from military army from the title you can understand that they were just "capitaes" as the main characters. Nice colors and lights during the whole movie, excellent work for the director being her first movie, she doesn't fall to the banal way. Well shown emotions and passion of people and crowd. The character of Maia (main one)is well-made and there is also a good interpretation for Stefano Accorsi, able to show Maia's limits, this not-being an hero.