The Scent Of Things Remembered

Portugal is the 4th oldest country in the world, with 182 elderly individuals for every 100 young people (2023 data). This demographic reality represents one of the country's major challenges, and it is a theme I aim to address in this film.
The story begins with our protagonist, Arménio, being “admitted” to a retirement home, seemingly against his will. Arménio is not only elderly but also a former combatant of the colonial war, a generation of men who had to live with the trauma of war, developing a hardened shell that has affected his family relationships over the years. Like many veterans, his relationship with the past is complex, particularly with Black individuals who were once seen as "enemies" or "terrorists," a memory that is deeply ingrained in many war veterans.
Not coincidentally, the caregiver assigned to Arménio at the retirement home is a Black woman, Hermínia, who will bring to the forefront the ghosts of Arménio's past. This choice is deliberate, as anyone visiting a retirement home in our country will observe that a significant portion of the staff are immigrants who undertake the demanding task of caring for the elderly. However, Hermínia, a Black Portuguese woman, challenges this ingrained prejudice in Portuguese society.
In this context, Arménio, a man who has overcome the violence of war and is used to being independent and stern, finds himself weakened and in a vulnerable position under the care of a Black woman. He must grapple with his own prejudices while trying to maintain a balance between his autonomy and his need for care due to his deteriorating health.
The film, therefore, explores themes of aging, bodily decline, the approach of death, and how we deal with these realities. It also addresses an entire generation of men who, in their early twenties, were thrust into a war where the enemy was the “Black terrorist.” Those who survived were sent back without explanations or assistance to reintegrate into a society that had undergone a revolution and transformed its ideals, leaving these men adrift in a new world, unable to escape the mentality imposed on them to prepare them for killing (Black people).
In the final phase of his life, Arménio, perhaps due to his increasing frailty, opens his heart and accepts help, finally establishing an affectionate connection with the Black woman he once viewed as a generic threat. Ultimately, racism is nothing more than a social construct (rooted in colonialist mentality) or ignorance (lack of knowledge about what is different from us) due to never having encountered the “other.” Forced into contact, the “other” becomes humanised and closer, ultimately equal to us.
This film also aims to honor the thousands of caregivers who diligently care for our elderly population day after day, highlighting a reality that remains behind closed doors and is largely unknown to the general public. To achieve this, the film incorporates “documentary” footage of real retirement homes, interspersed with the fictional narrative.