Life is the journey, life is the enigma.

At 99 years old, veteran filmmaker Manoel de Oliveira (Belle Toujours, MIFF 07) returns to MIFF with Christopher Columbus - The Enigma, a romanticised blending of fact and fiction exploring the origins of the great mariner.

Travelling back and forth between his birthplace of Portugal and his adopted home of the United States, Dr Manuel Da Silva finds his passion in the maritime exploration of the old days. With his new wife Silvia he roams, gathering evidence to support their belief that Christopher Columbus was actually Portuguese. In a quest that spans 40 years, as the couple seek the birthplace of the great explorer, they come to realise that the true goal of their travels is the journey itself.