He also published O Cinema português nunca existiu (Portuguese Cinema Never Existed, 1996), to celebrate the centenary of Portuguese cinema, and in which he comments, seemingly paradoxically, on the fact that in Portugal there is no tradition of cinema that allows for the indisputable emergence of the concept of "classic Portuguese cinema." The book Histórias do cinema português has also been published in English, French (1991) and German (1997). Between these two works, he published Muito lá de casa (1994). This work compiled the chronicles he published in newspapers and reveals, above all, his emotional relationship with cinema when selecting and commenting on the many actors and actresses who left a mark on his life. As stated in the note he included in the second edition of the work, João Bénard da Costa admits that changes and corrections to the first edition are minimal: "And I tell you frankly that I have not felt like adding anyone else. This is not a book about ‘lá de casa’ (from back home), but a book about ‘muito lá de casa’ (from way back home). The adverb is of time. This does not apply to recent visits, to a home where you have only seen the rooms and the bathroom." (Muito lá de casa, 2007, p. 10, author's italics).

Portrayed among these actors and actresses, mostly belonging to classic American cinema, are, among others, Gary Cooper, Joseph Cotten, Joan Fontaine, Gene Thierny, James Mason, and Ingrid Bergman. His relationship with these figures he saw in the cinema is particularly subjective, because it describes the relationship he established with them simply as a spectator, before becoming a cinephile. The emotional closeness that binds João Bénard da Costa to these characters allows him to draw a self-portrait, as if they were members of his family, lovers or childhood friends. For example, with regard to Joan Fontaine he writes: "Do not ask me for more physical details as I have already said that I forgot them. But I have never seen a woman so beautiful (at least so I thought) and that was the justification I gave for the erosion. Again and again, when her image eluded me, I ran to the entrance of the Eden to see posters and photos and to try to grab onto her." (Ibid, p. 31).

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