A Talking Picture

A Talking Picture (Portuguese: Um Filme Falado) is a 2003 drama written and directed by Portuguese filmmaker Manoel de Oliveira. A co-production between Portugal, Italy and France, it stars Catherine Deneuve, John Malkovich, Irene Papas, Stefania Sandrelli and Leonor Silveira. Running about 96 minutes, the film premiered in France in mid-October 2003, opened in Portugal two days later and arrived in Spanish cinemas in May 2004; it was also presented at the Venice Film Festival. Through both its title and its form, the picture deliberately lays bare the theatrical style that Oliveira had embraced and cultivated throughout his career, so that it can be read as the director's own explanation of his way of making cinema. The film also marks the final screen appearance of Greek actress Irene Papas, who withdrew from public life afterwards and died in 2022.