La moglie più bella

The Most Beautiful Wife 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 by 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