The Convent (Portuguese: O Convento) is a 1995 film by Portuguese director Manoel de Oliveira, starring Catherine Deneuve and John Malkovich and is inspired by an original idea by Agustina Bessa-Luís in her novel As terras do risco.

[2] The film opens when a Paris-based American professor Michael Padovic and his elegant French wife Hélène arrive at an ancient Portuguese convent in Arrábida where he believes the documents needed to prove his theory might be in its archives: Shakespeare was born in Spain named Jacques Perez, and was Jewish.

For his research work, Padovic spends most of his days in the library with the beautiful librarian Piedade, while Hélène is accompanied by Baltar who eventually professes his love towards the elegant lady.

As the tension increases to its dramatic climax, the film ends with an epilogue in the form of on-screen text from a fisherman's report.

Essential to the brooding atmosphere is Oliveira's choice of music by Sofia Gubaidulina (Offertorium, Sieben Worte), and portions of Igor Stravinsky’s “The Rake’s Progress” and Toshiro Mayuzumi’s “Prelude, for String Quartet.” In Portugal, the film was the most popular Portuguese film in 1995 with admissions of 35,000.