Tabu

MUST SEE: Miguel Gomes' Tabu (Portugal, 2012) - 2012BERic Alfred Bauer Prize. Even more than in "Our Beloved Month of August," Miguel Gomes begins "Tabu" in a seemingly ridiculous vein and unexpectedly shifts to something surprisingly enriching and poetic. The first part is a maddeningly artificial story of an elderly woman and her kind neighbor in Lisbon, and then, jumping back in time and place to Africa, the film becomes the story of an illicit love told via voiceover and ambient sound rather than dialogue. "Tabu" is nearly uncategorizable and strictly for patient arthouse crowds, yet those who wait are likely to come away still puzzled but deeply moved. 2012BERic, 2012NYFF, RATING: 8.