Modernist 60's 'Hotel Parque do Rio' in 'Mal Viver/ Viver Mal'

The films 'Mal Viver / Viver Mal' by Portuguese director João Canijo, released in the Netherlands, had their premiere on Portuguese television in early July, but then as a four-part series on RTP1. The diptych revolves around a dificult mother-daughter relationship in which the 1960s hotel plays a leading role.

The story takes place during a weekend, in a provincial hotel - Hotel do Rio - on the river and follows a family that is threatened by the bankruptcy of the hotel and is torn apart by jealousy and heartbreak, but especially by the inability to love and be a mother. Three groups of guests settle there who try to solve their crises. In the closed space of this hotel, on the waterfront, loves and antipathies are revealed, and frustrated lives and disastrous passions pass by. Both films premiered at the Berlinale 2023, with 'Mal Viver' winning the jury prize.

The architecture of the Hotel Parque do Ria in Ofir is from the hand of architect Júlio José Oliveira (1920-2004). An architect born in Lisbon, trained by Carlos Ramos in Porto, who left Lisbon for Fão (Ofir) in the 1960s. The construction started in 1962 as a restaurant with a swimming pool, later it was expanded with 36 rooms. It was recently renovated by the son of the architect, who is also called Júlio Oliveira. Newspaper Publico presented a number of photos showing the interior of a building that has managed to retain the charm of its time.

@publico e.o.