MANOEL DE OLIVEIRA

When is he going to die? HE STILL HAS COLOR IN HIS HAIR, he’s 102 years old! There’s no sign of him slowing down.

I think he’ll probably live another 50 years. Thoughts?

I was getting worried this was a sad announcement thread, but it’s the sardines and the North of Portugal and his sporting prowess, tennis, racing cars etc when younger, and the urge to make up for lost time under the dictator Salazar

this was 2 years ago

I’m glad the great old man is still alive. Just recently I watched some of his earlier films like “Acto de Primavera” and “O Passado e o Presente” which were brilliant discoveries. I’m looking forward to his longest film “The Satin Slipper” which I’m planning to watch someday soon.

Leonor Silveira has been in so many of his films, another good reason for hanging around

She’s truly wonderful in all of the films she participated. I especially liked her divine performance as Eva in A Divina Comédia.

I would live to 100, too, if I could frequently work with her.

great pic, i’m quite taken with her.

Kenji, that clip has filled my day with joy.

I adore “I’m Going Home” It’s a goodplace to start with him, I think.

Also great —

“Mon Cas”

“Le Soulier de Satin”

“Voyage to the End of the World”

“Party”

“The Convent”

One of his best films is NO; OR THE VAINGLORY OF COMMAND, it’s a panorama of Portuguese history as narrated by Luis Miguel Cintra(who like Silveira is also a card-carrying member of the Manoel De Oliveira Stock Company) who plays a history teacher drafted into the army during Portugal’s war in Angola in the 1970s(a war which would lead to the mostly non-violent coup/revolution ‘the Carnation Revolution’). The principle of the movie is that the key moments of Portuguese history were never its victories but its defeats.

Recently I also saw ‘’O Principio da Incerteza’’ with great performances from the two Leonors – Silveira and Baldaque. It’s a really striking film about class decadence in the 21st Century.

heaven would mean oliveira directing a saramago novel.

heaven is a place that oliveira needs to stay out of(:

Afraid I’ve never heard of him before this thread…But from what I see…I think I’ll start with Divina Comédia !

Anywhere I can see his films online? Netflix has like none…=/

I haven’t seen a film of him yet … and it doesn’t look like there are many DVDs of his films available where I live – in fact only one: Belle Toujours (2007). Is this film a good starting point?

And neither are any of his films available to watch on MUBI… :-(

Well, it’s his homage to Buñuel, so I’m not quite sure about it being a good starting point. While “Aniki Bóbó” would be the best to begin with, I think that “The Divine Comedy” would be another excellent starting point. Many of his films are available on DVD with Spanish subs, but he seems to be rather underrepresented in the English-speaking world. His masterpiece “Abraham’s Valley” is available on DVD with English subs though.

@ Hidden

Netflix has I’m Going Home and A Talking Picture available to stream, as well as the documentary Oporto of My Childhood . That’s a decent introduction. You can also get The Convent, which is very good, as well as Belle Toujours and Abraham’s Valley on DVD.

@ Grey

To me, Belle Toujours is entertaining, but inessential. It’s not ideal as a starting point, but it’s certainly worth watching.

Belle Toujours is a great film.

it is a sequel (of sorts tho) to Belle du jour

There’s only one place to start with De Oliveira, and that’s with his first feature, Aniki Bobo. No ands, ifs, and buts about it.

Oh, and Belle Toujours is pretty good, but I agree with Matt that it’s inessential. And why the hell isn’t Catherine Deneuve in that film, especially since she’s a De Oliveira staple???

that is a good question

the women they did get did not look much like her.

Deneuve turned it down.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/2009/jan/16/catherine-deneuve-interview

Can anyone tell me where I can find some Oliveira films in the U.S. with english or spanish subtitles. I know Abrahams Valley is available on the DVD but it’s dubbeb in French and I think the runninig time is wrong, theres a VHS copy that I heard was pretty good ,does anyone know about it?

Hi, Walberto. I’m afraid the VHS of Vale Abraão is also missing about 20 minutes (it was issued by the same distributor which did the DVD). And while I haven’t watched it, it’s safe to say that it isn’t letterboxed. But I don’t recall having any major issues with the DVDs of I’m Going Home (Image), A Talking Picture (Kino) and Belle toujours (New Yorker).

I agree with David E. in that I’m Going Home is a good place to start with de Oliveira, especially for those in the U.S. who can only view Region 1 DVDs.

Thats a shame about Vale Abraão It’s one of Oliveira’s films I’ve heard so much about, I’ll try to get my hands on “I’m going Home”. I’ve seen only three of his films “Aniki Bobo”, “Mon Cas” and “Inquitude”(The latter being the first Oliveira I saw and it’s one of the supreme masterpiece thats I’ve ever seen, reminds me of Resnai’s “Melo” and Dreyer’s “Gertrud”) Thanks Arsaib, hopefully some more of his films will be realesed properly her in the states.

Is that the Tetris theme music that they are dancing to?

There have been a few Oliveira threads, but this may be the one to mention his next film, set in Brazil, A Igreja do Diabo/The Church of the Devil, with Fernanda Montenegro- in pre-production according to imdb

Is there no stopping him?

I saw Eccentricities of a Blonde-Haired Girl a couple of days ago: what a delight! It’s only an hour long, may not seem to do much but it has the typical timeless quality, interesting framing, beautiful static shots, and i like its play with history, literature and fiction, bringing Eca de Queiros the source writer into the story itself, while there are layers to the story-telling process, with the young man recounting the tale to attentive Leonor Silveira who looks more at us than at him as he does so. The ending may seem abrupt but gives food for thought on the meanings involved, around tendency to quickly pass judgment (ours as well as the protagonist’s), questions of love that takes in real character v lust at first sight, the importance of money v romance, cautiousness v well-meaning trust. There is no lengthy character development and the uncle’s behaviour seems inexplicably harsh, but of course we have events mainly from one point of view. However, Oliveira lays on another layer as we the viewers can see a harp performance and literature recital that the narrator could only hear- just as the ending gives us an overview beyond his awareness. I’ve seen some negative comments on the film’s page here- to some he’s boring and he’s a far cry from Hollywood intensified continuity and short attention-spans but there’s a lot to enjoy, even with some lugubrious moments and although it’s often contained in small spaces rather than expansive.

This is a unique director, at ease with his own vision, a man who has conquered time, both on screen as well as in real life. What may seem staid or archaic to some i see as bold and full of wit.

Is his wife Maria Isabel Brandão de Meneses de Almeida Carvalhais still alive? They got married in 1940 and I think she was born 1918; would be 93, making them 196 between them, not out.

His wife is still alive. This was in April, when a new screen room was named after the portuguese filmmaker.

Hourray!!