Word: slaving
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Dates: during 1980-1989
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...Elia Kazan at the prestigious Actors Studio (with, among others, Geraldine Page, Rod Steiger and James Dean). Then Warner Bros, offered him a long-term movie contract starting at $1,000 a week. Abruptly he found himself wearing what he called a "cocktail gown" and playing a Greek slave named Basil in a religious costume saga, The Silver Chalice. It was the sort of absurdity that Virginia Mayo used to appear in, and she was in it. Newman, who is self-conscious about his bony legs, was so abashed that, as he points out now with some glee, he refused...
Xica (pronounced shee-ka) is an African slave who captures the attention of 18th century Brazil. Stylized and full of titillating shots, the film achieves success in the sheer exultation manifest by its splendiferous imagery. The finely tuned character acting and the bawdy deadpan script enable the movie to sustain a smoothly paved course. And Zeze Motta as the legendary figure Xica de Silva transforms a vibrant period piece into an electric saga that transcends time...
...film--a 1981 Brazilian export--depicts the rise and fall of Xica's influence in the Portuguese colony of Arraial do Tijuco. Initially a slave for a transplanted government official, Xica dominates her owner and his son with her unusual sexual prowess. But Xica sets her sights on more ambitious conquests; and what she wants, she gets. She manages to capture the mind and body of the new Portuguese governor. As the governor's slave, Xica wields her effervescent sensuality to the hilt, thus ascending to the most prominent social position in the land. Xica's fairy-tale-like climb...
Xica is not just a soft-porn foreign flick. Although a major focus of the plot is on Xica's sexuality and her effects on men, the themes extend into deeper realms. The film tackles the question of who is the slave and who is the master and visualizes the effect of Portugal on the natives of Brazil. And ultimately we wonder whether one person's ability to manipulate a colony with her body can endure...
Even though Xica uses her body as a means of increasing her position, she seems to enjoy her relationships and even exudes compassion for the slaves whom she has surpassed. When Xica's protector is sent back to Portugal, the slave still retains her inexplicable control over men. The bright colors have been replaced by black, but Xica--charms intact--adjusts to her once again lowly position. She has lost the adornments of power, but her corporal presence continues to reign...