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Florbela (2012) is a biographical film that dives into the life of Florbela Espanca, one of Portugal’s most iconic poets. Set in the 1920s, the film follows Florbela as she struggles with the constraints of a deeply conservative society, navigating failed marriages, personal losses, and the constant search for freedom. She is a gifted poet whom is subject to strict social rules and pressures. Women must be good wives, take care of the household, keep things in order, and support their husbands. Florbela struggles with these social norms put onto her, as she battles with longing for more - driven by her talent and love for poetry. But, when her beloved brother dies, she is thrown into an emotional and creative crisis, forcing her to confront her deepest fears and desires. The film beautifully analyzes what life was like for women in Portugal, whom although talented, may have been bound by what society wants them to be. Through stunning cinematography and a moving performance by Dalila Carmo, Florbela captures the intensity of a woman torn between love, independence, and artistic expression. In particular, the film uses soft natural lighting, combined with a muted, earthy color palette to enhance the romantic points in the film, and emphasize a sense of longing, and melancholy attitudes.

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"To Die like a Man", directed by Joao Pedro Rodrigues, is a drama that explores the life of Tonia, an transgender woman and drag performer in Lisbon. Tonia was once a celebrated cabaret star, but is aging, and despite her previous successes is faced with internal struggles. She is pressured by her boyfriend to undergo gender confirmation surgery, and at the same time struggles with the rejection of her son. The film is a tragic portrayal of a transgender woman facing scrutiny from all around her, and depicts her as she navigates between her own identity, and the identity pushed onto her from those around her. In the end, he chooses to "Die like a Man.

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Artistic Expression, Women's Identity, Grief, and Love

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Variacoes: Guardian Angel is another biographical film which explores the life of Antonio Variacoes, one of Portugal's most revolutionary musicians. The film is set in the 1970's, and portrays the journey of Vaariacoes, from working as a barber in a rural part of Portugal to becoming one of the country's most iconic pop stars. In an extremely conservative post dictatorship political sphere, VAriacoes had to endure discrimination at every turn. As an openly gay man, his unconventional style and uniqueness made gaining recognition for his musical talent much more difficult. He was seen as different, and his lifestyle choices were frowned upon and rejected. Eventually, Variacoes was able to make it big time, achieving great success in the 1980's and changing Portugal's music scene forever. However, Variacoes ultimately died of HIV/Aids complications, which expanded the stigma surrounding diseases like AIDS in Portugal at the time.

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“To Be a Poet” translated by Kay Cosgrove

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“To Be a Poet” translated by Kay Cosgrove

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To be a poet is to be taller, to be larger
Than men. To bite like others kiss.
It is to be a beggar and to give like you are king
of the kingdom of brief and ever-lasting pain.

It is to have a thousand wishes, splendor
And not even know what you desire.
It is to have here inside a star, a flame.
It is to have the condor’s talons and wings.

It is to be hungry, to thirst for the infinite.
The gold and satin mornings like an antique helmet;
It is to condense the world into a single cry,

And it is to love you, even so, desperately.
You are the soul, the blood, and the life in me
And I tell it to everyone through my song.

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Antonio variações - o corpo é que paga ( semi-original )

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Cultural Significance and Theme Connection:

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Cultural Significance and Theme Connection:

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Florbela is set in the early 20th century, primarily in the 1920's. At the time, Portugal was experiencing a period of political turmoil and unrest. This instability eventually led to the military coup of 1926, which later set the stage for the Estado Novo regime. At this time, women were expected to conform to traditional roles, such as working in the home, supporting their husbands, and taking care of their families. Florbela's poetry itself was often about love, desire, and the female identity which was seen as radical at the time. The film does a great job in portraying the struggles Florbela endured, not only in her struggles such as the death of a loved one but also the struggles of resisting social norms. This connects to the focus of "Exploring Identity and Seelf Expression", as Florbela must figure out who she is, and what she wants. She battles with different identities, one being a radical and talented poet, and the other a simple wife to her husband.

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Themes of Variacoes, although similar to Florbela in that they concern Artistic Freedom and the expression of one's identity, are different in the fact that Variacoes was not subject to gender role opression. He was faced with backlash for being openly gay, and thus the themes of this film expand further into LGBTQ+ Representation, and the Breaking of Social Barriers.

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Cultural Significance and Theme Connection

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Cultural Significance and Theme Connection

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Antonio Variacoes was one of Portugal's most iconic and ground breaking musicians. He significantly altered the music scene in Portugal forever. As an openly gay male, Antonio faced lots of backlash and rejection. Portugal had gone through political turmoil, and was still a quite conservative country with firm beliefs and social standards: Antonio did not fall within these standards. However, he was eventually able to beat the odds and grow a fan base few had seen in Portugal. Antonio, becoming so famous, was a huge leader for the LGBTQ+ community, and they're representation. This film brings that same representation to light again, being released in 2019. Variacoes expressed himself through song, and became an icon in the Portugese LGBTQ+ community. Through his journey in becoming a pop star, Variacoes was on a quest of self identity and self expression.

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I was unable to clip certain parts of the movie but am using the trailer as an example for some of the films's interesting cinematography. Even in the trailer, you can see the warm golden hues used in his more rural past, in comparison to the cooler tones used in shots of Lisbon. Also, I found it very commendable that the film used lots of handheld camera shots, which gave the feeling like you were there, and gave the film an organic, documentary feel.

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Tonia's internal conflicts she faces as a transgender woman reflect her battles with social norms and societal challenges. She is different, an outcast, and must deal with the connotations that come with that aspect of her life. On top of this, she is also challenged by her boyfriend and by her estranged son. With all of these conflicts, Tonia must figure out who she is, her identity, and what she stands for. Throughout the film, her identity is challenged and she must endure and grow to accept herself. This most definitely reflects the focus "Challenging Social Norms: Identity and Self-Expression in Contemporary Portuguese Cinema". Tonia is an artist, and must learn to continue to express herself how she wants to be perceived, regardless of what others push onto her. Clearly, the themes here are self expression, Identity, Gender Identity, and Self Acceptance.

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To Die like A Man was about the internal conflicts and struggles of the main character, Tonia. In my opinion, it was important for the audience to feel how lonely Tonia felt, and appreciate how alone she perceived herself to be. Uniquely, the director use long, uninterrupted shots in the film. To me, this helped exemplify the feeling of loneliness, and sorrow, while also making the movie feel slower and more stagnant. Also, they used wide frames when portraying Tonia, often alone, to make her seem even more isolated and alone. This in particular was genius, and leads the audience to better understand her position, making it easier to feel while watching the movie. (1:20 is an example)

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Unlike Florbela and Variacoes, To Die like A man is not based on a true story. However, the film still does well in portraying the reality of drag stars in Portugal, and the conservative values they were faced with. The movie most definitely reflects values in Portugal, such as religious ones, as well as standard beliefs such as gender conformity and the pressures LGBTQ+ faced at the time.

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All three of these films explore one's identity, self expression, and challenging the norms that society can place on a person. Portugal has gone through lots of political struggle, and in doing so has changed over the years. Yet, societal pressures and conservative values still loom large in many parts of Portugal. Florbela faced her biggest struggles against the conservative roles of women. Variacoes was an openly gay male, and Tonia was a transgender woman. Yet, despite lots of vigorous societal pressures these figures continued to search for their own identity, and express themselves in their own way. In a sense, they are all artists, weighed down by their differences and by the societal pressures pushing them to conform.

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Multimedia Assignment © 2025 by Kapono Dacascos is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0

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Aesthetic Minimalist Mood Board Instagram Post