Diamantino (2019) - Gabriel Abrantes & Daniel Schmidt

Visually astute and creatively designed, the film uses its dimwitted, empathetic protagonist with great utility, effectively weaponizing its fairy tale soaked formalism and overall light sensibilities into a pointed, brazen anti-nationalist message. Embraces yet distorts the tropes of fairy tale lure - the handsome prince with the heart of gold, the wicked sisters - weaving a playful examination of the state of the world, one that is far from subtle in its personal affront of nationalism in Portugal under this current epoch.  Presented with satirical flair and absurdist sensibilities, Dimantino touches on a host of contemporary socio-political talking points related to national and gender identity, as well as other societal defined constructions, doing so in a way that never feels pedantic nor didactic, evoking the same general sense of empathy and optimism as its main protagonist and in doing the film  feels very much like a modern fairy tale with its melodramatic confrontations and moralist undercurrent with an important message.