Princesa is a very dark and gritty film. It is based on a novel of the same name written by Maurizio Janelli.The film details the story of Fernanda, a Brazilian transsexual woman who immigrates to Italy in order to begin prostitution; not because she wants to, but simply because it was the only way to finance her goal of having a sexual reassignment surgery. Her self-esteem is taken to extreme lows until she meets Gianni; a levelheaded man who Fernanda as a real woman and not a sexual object. Some of Fernanda's self-esteem is regained through this relationship, but Fernanda still questions her own self-worth for not being born with a completely female body.The film itself is visually dark because most of the scenes take place at night. This alone shows how transgered individuals are forced to work night-jobs, usually in the sex industry. The look of the film itself is also very gritty. This helps to communicate an unsettling sense of reality as such a struggle is not an uncommon thing.The acting by Ingrid de Souza is top-notch, considering she is a transsexual female herself. The acting is very believable, in such a sense that it is almost not even acting; because Ingrid was apparaently channeling her own experiences and emotions into the performance. This is what makes the film so real.If one choses to watch this film, don't expect any comedy, any amazing spectacle, or to feel happy at the end of the film. Be prepared to watch something that depicts a very unfortunate reality.

Princesa is a romance movie based on a non fiction book written by Jannelli and Fernanda Farias de Albuque. Fernanda is a transgender and moved to Italy to get gender-change surgery, and she worked as a prostitute to make money. She hope to be a woman and live as a woman, so she was looking for someone who treat her as that. Gianni is the one who is ideal for her, and he is attracted by her warmth like mother's. Even though her surround were against, she feel easy when she is with him. However, Gianni's ex-wife visit to her and she opens up to be pregnant. At last, She understand it's biologically impossible to realize his hope that is to have kids, so she decide to brake up with him, and live as a prostitute again. This movie portraits principal of men. When Fernanda and her friend, Charlo discuss about their customers, Charlo said " every men's gay" . Even though this is extrema opinion, men are tend to have mother complexity. Men are always expected to behave like a warier and protect women, so sometimes they want to feel easy like being held by mother. That's why they go to the men prostitute.

I loved the movie as well. It was honest, beautifully written, shot, scored, and casted.I really liked the protagonist, the he and the she. I disagree with one of the posters that it was sad. Yes, some things didn't work out, but the protagonist still moves on with a hope and a dream that is still in tack. Life is often not perfect, but still, there is beauty in it, just as the policeman said as he so tactfully took the protagonist down from a roof in Milan.

As many readers know, I was heavily influenced in foreign film by a small channel in Los Angeles during the 1980's called the "Z" channel. Up until that time, I had never seen foreign films or considered them as entertainment. The channel is gone, but this would have been one of the films they would have shown. I say this because this film is not widely shown on cable channels and you have to be lucky to catch it.The central character, Princessa was from South America and was trying to find out whom Princessa as a transsexual was - and it's NOT a pretty road to do so. There's always someone taking advantage while you're trying to be who you are. Princessa travels to Milan to be something she always thought she should be and finding out "to thine own self be true".I found this story sad and moving and probably a very hard story to tell -- and once more, a story that others may be going through. This film is not for everyone, but a brave move to tell a story -- warts and all.