Presence of Mind deals less with physical space and more with psychological and mental space. The film is simply a series of shots of people and their surroundings. Some of the shots are synchronous sound, some are non-synchronous sound, some are silent and some are just sound without picture. My experience is that synchronous sound situations create a mental reality or presence which is greater than the sum of its parts. In other words, the synchronous combination of picture and sound forms a spatial reality which is uniquely present. Presence of Mind deals with variations of this spatial presence created by sync sound film.
Cornélio, an aged man and famous baritone, marries the young Angelica, who plans with her ex-boyfriend Bruno, to kill the husband with contaminated oysters, but she ends up the one who gets sick.
Letter carrier Eva is in her late twenties, unmarried and the mother of a twelve-year-old son. She falls in love with Jon, a bargeman who is unfortunately already engaged.
The story Peter is telling the about a special summer, when he is invited over to summer holiday from bickering parents, to his aunt and uncle in the country.
Lola Reyes is a singer who is succeeding and, therefore, is besieged by everyone. A group of homosexuals are the only ones authorized by his possessive mother to be her friends.
The film is based on the memoirs of partisan commander Peter Kružliak. Lieutenant Peter Kubiš is ordered to move with his unit to the mountains after the fall of Banská Bystrica, where he is to receive further orders.
