Passionada
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Passionada is a 2002 romantic comedy film. It is directed by Dan Ireland and stars Jason Isaacs, Sofia Milos and Emmy Rossum. The story is by David Bakalar, and the screenplay is by Jim Jermanok and Steve Jermanok. The film is set in New Bedford, Massachusetts, a formerly wealthy port town with a sizable population of Portuguese descent.
[edit] Plot summary
Celia Amonte (Sofia Milos) is a Portuguese American widow who lives in New Bedford, Massachusetts with her daughter Vicky (Emmy Rossum). The broke British card counter Charles "Charlie" Beck (Jason Isaacs) arrives in town to stay with and mooch off some wealthy friends and gamble at the local casino. One night, dining at a Portuguese restaurant with his friends, Charlie sees Celia singing fado, a haunting Portuguese form of song. He is enchanted with her, approaches her, and is rebuffed. Charlie later finds Celia's address in the phone book and goes to her house, where he encounters Vicky, whom he had met at the casino before. Vicky agrees to help Charlie woo her mother in exchange for lessons on card counting. This proves difficult, as Celia still longs for her deceased husband and has not dated since his death.