Dona Violante Miranda (1960)

Synopsis (with all the spoilers you can get -- I doubt someone is going to watch this one anyway):
Dona Violante Miranda owns a brothel. One of her 'girls' gets sick and dies, leaving a child that was nameless and was called simply 'Filhinha' (Little Daughter). Dona Violante adopts the child. Meanwhile, in an unrelated subplot, another of her 'workers' -- the most coveted woman in the house -- is taken as a regular lover by one of her clients who was prospering due to World War II, and abandons the profession. Dona Violante gives the best education to Filhinha, and when Dona Violante's unwed condition becomes an obstacle to Filhinha being accepted at a fine school, Dona Violante marries an old friend, who serves as medical doctor at the house -- though he hasn't really got a degree in medicine. One day, Dona Violante decides to abandon her profession and establish herself as a farmer in the same town where Filhinha's mother grew up -- and from where she had been expelled after her unwanted pregnancy. She prospers and Filhinha grows to become engaged to the son of a wealthy man -- who is related to the very person who once got Filhinha's mother pregnant. Also, the town's mayor is the father of Filhinha's mother. When Filhinha's fiancé's father discovers Dona Violante's past activities, he calls off the wedding, claiming they are 'racially inferior'. Filhinha, who was listening from behind a door, turns against her mother in tears. Dona Violante then reveals to all that Filhinha is actually the mayor's granddaughter, which makes her acceptable again, since she is now 'racially superior'. Filhinha goes on to marry her fiancé, and Dona Violante is bitterly saddened by the events. Later, we hear through the narrator of the story that Filhinha and the other townsfolk apologize to Dona Violante for their behavior, and Dona Violante dies reconciled with everyone.

Appraisal: Despite its melodramatic plot, this film for most of its duration is kept from wallowing in explicit tear-jerking thanks to (unfunny) interspersed comic bits, mostly from the leading actress's lines and exaggerated performance. I should add that many of the supporting performances are appalling, and the mise-en-scene is mediocre. Also, the depiction of the activities inside the brothel is extremely timid: you never see a customer in the house! The social message, though conveyed through a ridiculous plot, is mainly liberal-minded and tolerant, though there are several comic set-pieces that make fun of prostitutes, featuring fictitious institutions like a Union for Prostitutes that claims the same rights for them as for other workers, including paid retirement. It is ironic that these rights, that were once made fun of, are now legally secured in many countries.

Rating: 34