The Most Beautiful Wife

The Most Beautiful Wife (La moglie più bella) is a 1970 Italian film directed by Damiano Damiani, based on the 1965 case of Franca Viola, who challenged the still frequent southern Italian custom of kidnapping and raping a prospective bride for refusing to marry her abductor. It was the debut film for the then 14-year-old Ornella Muti.

Synopsis
Francesca is a young peasant girl who has caught the eye of Vito, a promising mafioso. She is initially pleased with the man's attention and the two agree to wed. This bliss is short lived as she soon discovers that he is a violent, jealous, and possessive man that expects complete and abject obedience from her, causing her to rebel against the impending marriage after witnessing a mob killing. Unwilling to lose face, Vito decides to imprison Francesca on a farm, where he repeatedly rapes her. His goal is to force her into a fuitina or "rehabilitating marriage", as customs dictate that a woman should marry the one who took her virginity, whether the encounter was willing or not.

Francesca is eventually able to obtain freedom and tries to seek legal justice. She soon discovers that no one is willing to support her. They either fear that Vito will seek revenge or believe his lies that Francesca is only causing issues because he refused to marry her after discovering she was a promiscuous woman who lied about being a virgin. Despite this, Francesca perseveres and reports him to the police. The resulting scandal and attempts by her parents to stop her from pursuing justice makes life difficult for Francesca, however in the end she triumphs and Vito is thrown in jail.

Cast

 * Ornella Muti as Francesca Cimarosa
 * Alessio Orano as Vito Juvara
 * Pierluigi Aprà as Carabinieri Lieutenant
 * Tano Cimarosa as Gaetano Cimarosa
 * Joe Sentieri as Poidomani
 * Amerigo Tot as Don Antonino Stella
 * Enzo Andronico as Vito Juvara's Lawyer

Production
Filming took place in Cinisi, Partinico, Trappeto, and also in the ruins of Gibellina and Santa Ninfa. Actress Ornella Muti was brought in to portray Francesca Cimarosa, her film debut. As she was fourteen at the time of filming, the movie was subject to strict film regulation, one of which was no depiction of an on screen rape.

Damiani and the other writers chose to have the script differ in several ways from the real life kidnapping, rape, and prosecution. Scholar Niamh Cullen notes that Francesca's behaviors bore more similarity to feminists of the 60s and 70s, whereas upon rescue the real life Franca had reportedly accepted the impending marriage as a grim and unwanted inevitability. Reactions from the police and her family also differed, as she noted that reporting showed that her family had been very supportive and the police investigation implied no reluctance to prosecute.

Reception
DVD Talk reviewed the film favorably, praising the cinematography and the acting of Ornella Muti, comparing her favorably to Brooke Shields in Louis Malle's Pretty Baby, stating that "She carries the role magnificently, especially when battling for her self-respect against heavy odds."

Awards

 * Grolla d'oro for Best Debut Actress (Ornella Muti, won)