''Xica'' () is a 1976 Brazilian

comedy film The comedy film is a film genre that emphasizes humor. These films are designed to amuse audiences and make them laugh. Films in this genre typically have a happy ending, with dark comedy being an exception to this rule. Comedy is one of the o ...

directed and written by

Carlos Diegues Carlos Diegues (also known as Cacá Diegues; 19 May 1940 – 14 February 2025) was a Brazilian film director, best known as a member of the Cinema Novo movement. He was popularly known for his unconventional, yet intriguing film techniques among ...

, based on the novel by João Felício dos Santos, which is a romanticized retelling of the true story of

Chica da Silva Francisca da Silva de Oliveira (–1796), known in history by the name Chica da Silvahttp://dicionarioegramatica.com/2015/12/06/chica-ou-xica-da-silva-o-certo-e-xica-ou-chica-da-silva/ Chica ou Xica da Silva? in: DicionarioeGramatica.com and w ...

,http://dicionarioegramatica.com/2015/12/06/chica-ou-xica-da-silva-o-certo-e-xica-ou-chica-da-silva/ Chica ou Xica da Silva? in: DicionarioeGramatica.com an 18th-century slave in Brazil, who attracts the attention of a powerful Portuguese land-owner and eventually rises into the Brazilian

high society High society, sometimes simply Society, is the behavior and lifestyle of people with the highest levels of wealth, power, fame and social status. It includes their related affiliations, social events and practices. Upscale social clubs were open ...

. The movie stars Zezé Motta, Walmor Chagas and José Wilker. It was chosen as the Brazilian submission for the

Academy Award The Academy Awards, commonly known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit in film. They are presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) in the United States in recognition of excellence ...

for Best Foreign Language Film at the

49th Academy Awards The 49th Academy Awards were presented Monday, March 28, 1977, at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion in Los Angeles, California, hosted by Richard Pryor, Ellen Burstyn, Jane Fonda, and Warren Beatty. Both '' Network'' and '' All the President's Men' ...

, but it was not nominated.Margaret Herrick Library, Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences

Plot

The film is based on the novel ''Memórias do Distrito de Diamantina'', written by João Felicio dos Santos (who has a small role in the film as a

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

pastor). It is a romanticized retelling of the true story of

, an 18th-century

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 20% of Earth's land area and 6% of its total surfac ...

slave Slavery is the ownership of a person as property, especially in regards to their labour. Slavery typically involves compulsory work, with the slave's location of work and residence dictated by the party that holds them in bondage. Enslavemen ...

in the state of

Minas Gerais Minas Gerais () is one of the 27 federative units of Brazil, being the fourth largest state by area and the second largest in number of inhabitants with a population of 20,539,989 according to the 2022 Brazilian census, 2022 census. Located in ...

, who attracts the attention of João Fernandes de Oliveira, a Portuguese sent by

Lisbon Lisbon ( ; ) is the capital and largest city of Portugal, with an estimated population of 567,131, as of 2023, within its administrative limits and 3,028,000 within the Lisbon Metropolitan Area, metropolis, as of 2025. Lisbon is mainlan ...

with the Crown's exclusive contract for

mining Mining is the Resource extraction, extraction of valuable geological materials and minerals from the surface of the Earth. Mining is required to obtain most materials that cannot be grown through agriculture, agricultural processes, or feasib ...

diamond Diamond is a Allotropes of carbon, solid form of the element carbon with its atoms arranged in a crystal structure called diamond cubic. Diamond is tasteless, odourless, strong, brittle solid, colourless in pure form, a poor conductor of e ...

s, and eventually becomes his lover, rises into power and into the Brazilian

of the time. Moreover, João quickly lets the

intendant An intendant (; ; ) was, and sometimes still is, a public official, especially in France, Spain, Portugal, and Latin America. The intendancy system was a centralizing administrative system developed in France. In the War of the Spanish Success ...

and other authorities know that he can be bribed, and gets onto their

corruption Corruption is a form of dishonesty or a criminal offense that is undertaken by a person or an organization that is entrusted in a position of authority to acquire illicit benefits or abuse power for one's gain. Corruption may involve activities ...

scheme. Eventually Lisbon hears of João's (and Xica's) excesses and sends an inspector. José, a political radical, is another main character, who provides Xica refuge.

Cast

* Zezé Motta as Xica da Silva (based on

) * Walmor Chagas as João Fernandes * Altair Lima as Intendent *

Elke Maravilha Elke Maravilha ( Grünupp; 22 February 1945 – 16 August 2016) was a German-Brazilian actress, model and television personality. She lived in Brazil from her early childhood until her death. Biography Maravilha was born to a Latvian father a ...

as Hortência * Stepan Nercessian as José * Rodolfo Arena as Sargeant * José Wilker as The Count of Valadares * Marcos Vinicius as Teodoro * João Felicio dos Santos as pastor

TV adaptation

In 1996, the now defunct TV station

Rede Manchete Rede Manchete (; lit.: Headline Network; also known as TV Manchete or only Manchete) was a Brazilian television network that was founded in Rio de Janeiro on 5 June 1983 by the Ukrainian-Brazilian journalist and businessman Adolpho Bloch. The ...

successfully adapted the film plot to the

telenovela A telenovela is a type of a television serial drama or soap opera produced primarily in Latin America. The word combines ''tele'' (for "television") and ''novela'' (meaning "novel"). Similar Drama (film and television), drama genres around the w ...

format, directed by Walter Avancini, written by Walcyr Carrasco and starring Taís Araújo as the title character. This telenovela marked the first time an

Afro-Brazilian Afro-Brazilians (; ), also known as Black Brazilians (), are Brazilians of total or predominantly Sub-Saharan African ancestry. Most multiracial Brazilians also have a range of degree of African ancestry. Brazilians whose African features are mo ...

actress played the lead role on a TV show. In 2005, SBT re-aired ''Xica da Silva''.

References

Sources

External links