A Wonderful Kingdom

In the Douro valley, the oldest demarcated wine region in the world, an annual tradition takes place. “A Wonderful Kingdom” is a feature documentary that captures this beautiful and remote region that comes alive for the wine harvest each year, and follow the local characters who instill its spirit through their hands.

Runtime : 79 mins
Released : 2021

A Wonderful Kingdom Film Synopsis:
In the mountains of Portugal, amidst the stunning, timeless vineyards of the Douro Valley lies the heart and soul of Old World winemaking. Once a year a divine ritual begins, the harvesting of the season’s grapes by the generations-old families who pick, carry, and stomp their way through September with blood-red feet, stained by grape juice.
Celebrating tradition over mythology, “A Wonderful Kingdom” is an homage to these hard-working folks – they are the lifeblood that flows through the rocks of the region.   Narrated by Malcolm McDowell and set to prose by the iconic poet Miguel Torga, this hypnotic, observational documentary unfurls across the epic beauty and austerity of both nature and humanity.

A Wonderful Kingdom is a visual feast, a poetic meditation on heritage winemaking, and, above all, a love letter to Portugal. Stepping outside the conventions of standard wine documentaries and travelogues, this cinematic journey takes viewers into the heart and soul of Portugal’s Douro Valley and its wines, a UNESCO World Heritage site and the oldest demarcated wine region in the world.
Defined in many ways by its geography, the uniqueness of this province, Trás-os-Montes e Alto Douro, lies in its isolation and challenging climate.  Here, where little can be farmed but grapes, olives, and almonds, dusty hills were terraced to give grape vines maximum exposure to the sun, and the land took on the particular contours that define its beauty today.

Watch the Trailer:

 

  

The Filmmaker: Carlos Carneiro
Narrated by Malcolm MacDowell

Shot in: 
Quinta das Amendoeiras (Negreiros Wines),
Quinta da Gricha (Churchill’s Wines),
Quinta de Nápoles,
Vale de Mendiz (Niepoort Wines)
Quinta Maria Izabel (Maria Izabel Wines).

Learn more about the Douro Valley by watching The Douro Boys Winter Season