Marcela Lordy has made a film as thorny, erotic, and complex as the writing of one of Brazil’s most fêted writers, Clarice Lispector. Set in Rio, and based on Lispector’s novel with the same name, The Book of Delights is a compelling character study focuses on a complicated, intelligent, freedom-loving, slightly damaged woman, Lóri (Simone Spoladore), a primary school teacher who picks up men and women on a whim but is always searching. Eventually, she begins a stop-start relationship with arrogant but likeable philosophy professor Ulisses (Javier Drolas). There is a lot to like here about Spoladore’s performance—scenes with her students are a delight; a visit from her brother, who chastises her for escaping the clutches of her rural family, has truth; her heartbreak at the early loss of her mother is felt. That the film is also so visually rich makes this a captivating work.