“Now in his seventies, Manoel de Oliveira has been widely acclaimed as one of Europe's most innovative film stylists; his most recent work, Francisca, appeared on more ‘Ten Best of 1981' lists than any other film in Cahiers du Cinema. Based on a contemporary Portuguese novel set in the nineteenth century, the plot of Francisca was inspired by a true incident which occurred in the family of de Oliveira's wife. Two young men, Jose Augusto and Camilo, spend their days musing on life, women, destiny and politics. Both meet and are immediately smitten with an English woman, Fanny Owen. When she consents to wed the dandyish Jose Augusto, a marriage is arranged, but it takes place with representatives of the couple. A victim of his own perverse philosophy, it was the pursuit of Fanny which most interested Jose Augusto; once she moves into his house, she is totally ignored by her husband, who refuses to touch her.
“De Oliveira's films are deeply passionate yet subtly understated. If his work can be said to have a ‘theme,' it would be frustrated love, the subject of four of his seven feature films. Never has personal repression been given a more tangible screen image: the rigid, stylized acting, deeply influenced by oriental theater, together with the meticulous visual composition, stand in sharp contrast to the violence imbedded in his narratives.” Richard Pena, The Film Center