Black Cloaks (1947): cast, story & where to watch

Released in 1947, Black Cloaks is a drama, romance and music film directed by Armando de Miranda, running about 103 minutes.

What it’s about. The great fadista, Amelia Rodrigues, made her screen debut in Capas Negras, which took its name from the black capes worn by the students in the university city of Coimbra, where the film is set. The action begins in a tavern where a group of former students are reminiscing about their time at the university. One of the students, Jose Duarte then breaks into song, performing an impromptu fado in the local Coimbra style. The tavern owner's niece, the aptly named Maria Lisboa promptly retaliates with a fado of the Lisbon variety. The melodramatic plot then centers on the frustrated romance between these two characters, and the soundtrack is essentially a musical duel between these two different styles of Portugal's national song.

Who’s in it. Black Cloaks stars Amália Rodrigues as Maria de Lisboa, Alberto Ribeiro as José Duarte, Artur Agostinho as Manecas and Vasco Morgado as Jorge, among others.

How it landed. With an audience score of 6.5/10, Black Cloaks has drawn a solid, mixed-to-positive response.

Where to watch. Streaming options change often. See the full, country-by-country breakdown on our where to watch Black Cloaks page.

If you liked it. Fans of Black Cloaks tend to enjoy The Shawshank Redemption, The Godfather, Schindler's List and The Godfather Part II.