Learn Hardcore Portuguese (Portugal): Este filme é excelente.

The noun filme is masculine, so you must use este filme.
If the noun were feminine, like série (series), you’d say esta série é excelente.

What exactly does este mean here? Is it like this in English?

Yes, este basically means this.

In European Portuguese, roughly:

este filme – this film (close, just mentioned, or currently being talked about very directly)
esse filme – that film (often something mentioned earlier, or connected to the listener)
aquele filme – that film over there / that film (more distant, less “current” in the conversation)

In practice, este filme is very natural when you are actively talking about a film you’ve just seen, are holding, or that is clearly the main focus of the conversation.

Why is there no article like o (the) in Este filme é excelente?

Demonstratives like este already include the idea of the, so you don’t add an article in front:

o filme é excelente – the film is excellent
este filme é excelente – this film is excellent

You do not say este o filme; that would be incorrect.

Why do we use é and not está? What’s the difference?

Portuguese has two verbs for to be: ser and estar.

ser (here: é) is used for more permanent, essential, or characteristic qualities.
estar (here: está) is used for temporary states or conditions.

Calling a film excellent is seen as an inherent quality or a settled opinion, so you use ser:

Este filme é excelente. – This film is excellent (its quality is excellent).

You would use estar more for situations like:

O cinema está cheio. – The cinema is full (right now).

How is é different from e without an accent?

They look similar but are completely different words:

é (with accent) – is, the 3rd person singular of ser (ele/ela/você é)
e (no accent) – the conjunction and

So:

Este filme é excelente. – This film is excellent.
filme e série – film and series

The accent on é also tells you how to pronounce it: it’s an open ɛ sound, like the e in English bet.

How do you pronounce Este filme é excelente in European Portuguese?

Approximate European Portuguese pronunciation (non‑phonetic, just to give you an idea):

Este – like ESH-t(ɨ) (the s between vowels is /ʃ/, like English sh; the final e is very reduced, almost like a quick “uh”)
filme – FEEL-m(ɨ) (two syllables: fil‑me, the last e also very reduced)
é – like ɛ, similar to the e in bet
excelente – es-se-LEN-t(ɨ)
- initial ex here sounds like esh / es (European Portuguese often says something like esh-se-LEN-tə)
- stress is on -len-: ex-ce-LEN-te

Said quickly and naturally, a European speaker may reduce or almost swallow some final e sounds.

Why is excelente after filme? Could I say Excelente filme instead?

The default word order in Portuguese is noun + adjective:

filme excelente – excellent film
Este filme é excelente. – This film is excellent.

You can say Excelente filme!, especially as an exclamation, but that has a slightly different feel:

Excelente filme! – More like a comment or review title: An excellent film! / What an excellent film!

So:

For a neutral sentence stating a fact: Este filme é excelente. (most natural)
For an emphatic exclamation, e.g. after leaving the cinema: Excelente filme!

Why doesn’t excelente change for masculine/feminine here?

Adjectives ending in ‑e typically have the same form for masculine and feminine in the singular:

um filme excelente – an excellent film (masc.)
uma série excelente – an excellent series (fem.)

They only change for number (singular/plural):

filme excelente → filmes excelentes
série excelente → séries excelentes

So excelente is invariable for gender, but it becomes excelentes in the plural.

Does filme mean both film and movie?

Yes. In European Portuguese, filme covers both English words film and movie.

Gosto muito deste filme. – I really like this film / this movie.

If you want to sound more formal or old-fashioned, you might very occasionally see película, but in everyday European Portuguese filme is the normal, neutral word.

Could I just say É excelente without este filme?

Yes. Once it’s clear from context what you are talking about, Portuguese often drops the explicit subject:

(Talking about a specific film)
- É excelente. – It’s excellent.

This is very natural in conversation, as long as everyone knows you’re referring to that film. In English you must keep it, but Portuguese can leave it implied.

What’s the full present tense of ser so I can see where é comes from?

Present tense of ser (European Portuguese):

eu sou – I am
tu és – you are (informal singular)
ele / ela é – he / she is
você é – you are (polite singular)
nós somos – we are
vocês são – you are (plural)
eles / elas são – they are

In Este filme é excelente, é matches este filme (3rd person singular).

Can I say Esse filme é excelente instead? Does it sound different?

You can say Esse filme é excelente, and it is grammatically correct in European Portuguese.

The difference is subtle and often depends on context:

Este filme é excelente. – this film is excellent (often something very “here and now,” the one we’re focusing on or have just seen)
Esse filme é excelente. – that film is excellent (perhaps one you just mentioned, or one the other person was talking about)

In real conversation, European speakers are not always strict about the distance distinction, but este tends to feel a bit more “this one right here / this one we’re dealing with now.”

Is Este filme é excelente formal, informal, or neutral?

It’s neutral. You can use Este filme é excelente:

in everyday conversation
in a movie review
in class, presentations, etc.

If you wanted more colloquial European Portuguese, you might hear:

Este filme é mesmo muito bom. – This film is really very good.
Este filme é brutal. – This film is awesome.

But Este filme é excelente is perfectly natural and correct in almost any context.