what a great question. i’d like to know too. (i’ve seen a few, but he’s made so many that advice is always welcome)…will be keeping an eye on this thread (and hoping that angelica might get a cinema release here)
I think Aniki Bobo is is the logical place to start as it is his first feature. And it is just a sweet little gem of a film that for me conjures up comparisons to Italian neorealist films and Kiarostami’s early films about children.
P.S. And it is simply mind-blowing to think that this film was made some 70 years ago and that Oliveira is churning out quality films.
Blue is right, “Aniki Bóbó” is meanwhile available with English subs, and that’s exactly the place to start. His previous short “Working on the Douro River” which can be found on youtube is also worth checking out. It’ll be hard to get hold of many other important earlier films by de Oliveira with English subs, those who speak either Portuguese, Spanish (a wonderful DVD-box is available to buy online which features various of his early films with Spanish subs) or Italian (many early films are available online with Italian subs as recordings from RAI TV) have better chances to really delve into his oevre. There seem to be no decent English subs for the films that follow “Aniki Bóbó”, his beautiful ethnographic film “Rite of Spring” that reminds of Straub and Huillet, his intellectual soap opera “The Past and the Present”, his breathtaking masterpiece “Benilde, or the Virgin Mother” that shares quite a few similarities with Dreyer’s later sound films, "Doomed Love, which I have yet to see myself, the elegant and touching costume film “Francisca” and his epic “The Satin Slipper” (which I own on DVD with Spanish subs, but haven’t yet found the time watching). “The Divine Comedy” is available with English subs, and I would recommend that one next, it’s a brilliant mixture of literary sources such as Dante, Tolstoy or Dostoevsky which gives evidence of de Oliveira’s sense of humour. “Abraham’s Valley” is also based on literature, in that case Flaubert’s Madame Bovary is transfered to Portugal. Among the de Oliveira films that I’ve seen, “Abraham’s Valley” is his most stunning achievement, one of the most beautiful and unforgettable movies I’ve ever seen. Among his later films I especially liked “I’m Going Home” which is a nice homage to aging, his “The Uncertainty Principle” is also well worth checking out.
start with Belle Tujours if you have seen Belle Du Jour
I haven’t seen any either, but I was thinking of going with Abraham’s Valley once I do decide to start.
Where can one find a decent DVD of Abraham’s Valley? The region one is botched. Also, all sources say I’m Going Home is 90 minutes, but the DVD I received from netflix was only around 85 minutes. And Pal speed up wouldn’t shorten a 90 minute film by 5-6 minutes.
What do you mean by botched?
The DVD is cropped, and it’s missing 20 minutes of the film. The picture itself is also distorted.
There’s an All Regions DVD by Lusomundo which features the complete 210 minutes version of “Abraham’s Valley” with English subs. It can be found here.
There’s a Manoel de Oliveira 100 years 22-DVD Anniversary Box Set that covers the majority of his output since the mid-Eighties. Needless to say, it’s fairly expensive, but nineteen out of the twenty-one films that are included feature English subtitles.
But for those in the U.S. who have limited access I’m Going Home (2001) wouldn’t be a bad place to start, I think.
Thanks for that box set link, Arsaib. A lot of films, but the price is a bit steep. This is frustrating. I’m debating what to do, maybe work through the most promising not seen on an individual basis, even if many aren’t on dvd on their own. But it would be great to have so many together.
I would say start with Aniki Bobo, which is extremely charming, and Abraham Valley, which i adore. I’m not sure Belle Toujours is an ideal starter, as for everyone who thinks it lives up to or adds to the original, there will be someone a bit disappointed, i think, and although it brings Oliveira’s quirky elegance it’s still indebted to Bunuel. It was a pity Deneuve, who had worked with Oliveira before, wasn’t in the film, since to me that made the character less convincing.
p.s As i’ve said elsewhere, i understand Manoel de Oliveira began filiming Douro, Faina Fluvial in 1929- this means that he has been making films in 10 different decades.
Shindo Kaneto, who was an assistant for Mizoguchi, and long-time writer as well as director, is 99, but i don’t know if he’s stopped or got anything in the pipeline- he wrote and directed a film released last year.
Deneuve turned it down.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/2009/jan/16/catherine-deneuve-interview
Yeah, it was understandable but i would still have preferred her in the part. I quite liked the film- Oliveira has too much intelligence to be less than interesting- but i’m not sure it was necessary
True.
It appears that Ichimai no hagaki, the film you referred to, was Shindô’s “last piece of work.”
I agree with Arsaib. “I’m Going Home” is a great place to start. It’s a film about old age made by someone who’s REALLY OLD. After that I;d try “Voyage To the End of the World” — Marcello Mastroianni’s last film. And of you can find it “La Lettre” — hie version of “The Princess of Cleves.”
A good start for discover the master Manoel’s work is “Viagem ao princípio do mundo”. Aniki Bóbó is so sweet but not so much related, in style, to the others Manoel de Oliveira’s films. Vale Abraão is masterpiece but not so easy to start."
Like David, I’m really fond of Voyage to the End of the World as and think that would make a good start as well. And as many have suggested, Abraham’s Valley may indeed be his best work. It’s certainly his best of what I’ve seen by him. And I agree with Kenji that Belle Toujours isn’t an ideal introduction to his work as it doesn’t do him justice in my opinion.
Belle Toujours is in my top 30 favorite films but I understand a lot of people don’t love it. I only suggest it if you have seen Jour since if you have there is already an interest there and the film is light and brief and displays his mannered style well, especially in contrast to Bunuel.
I’ve been on mubi too long, keep repeating myself, but i suppose there are always new thread readers. Voyage/Journey to the Beginning of the World feels special to me for its opening at Caminha facing across the Minho to Oliveira’s college in Spain and then driving along the road i know well, heading upriver. David’s clip of Oliveira dancing is one i used in my Portugal, Land of my Dreams list. Isn’t he incredible? I most want to see Amor de Perdicao, Francisca, Eccentricities of a Blonde-haired Girl, which is on dvd in its own right, The Convent, The Magic Mirror..
Abraham Valley was the first i saw by him and made me a fan at once, but it may be slow for some tastes- i know not all Portuguese go for his style. The Douro Valley is heavenly and Leonor Silveira, who has been in many of his films, is elegant and wonderful.
Joks
Ok, i’m completely and utterly ignorant about this man’s films. The reason i’ve put off watching them is because they aren’t always easy for me to get a hold of, plus i don’t know where to start.
Any suggestions by you good people would be much appreciated.
Thanking you in advance. ;-)