The final day of this year's MIFF was a difficult one for me; in fact
if I am being totally honest, I didn't enjoy it at all. Sleep
deprived, and just flat out exhausted, I struggled the entire day.
It was a day where I watched four films, all of them back to back,
and due to my exhaustion, I found it very hard to concentrate fully
on the films that I was watching. However, even in the state I found
myself in on day 17 of this film festival, I knew that I had
witnessed something special in my third film. The film was Celine
Sciamma's “Portrait of a Lady on Fire”, and it was an exquisite
piece of art.
Set on an isolated island in France during the eighteenth century, a
young painter, Marianne, is commissioned to do a wedding portrait of
Heloise. The catch is that she must do so without her knowledge, as
Heloise is totally against the wedding arranged for her, and thus
refuses to sit and pose for such a painting. The story behind the
wedding is more tragic than initially thought, as Heloise's sister
was originally meant to be the man's bride, but preferred to take her
own life instead of being forced into marriage. Heloise herself was
studying to be a nun, but upon her sister's death, she was removed
from the convent to take her sister's place. As the sister took her
own life by throwing herself over a nearby cliff, Heloise's mother
comes up with a plan to disguise Marianne as a walking partner for
the young woman; giving her a chance to be outdoors while giving her
mother the piece of mind that she also will not be able to take her
own life, as she will have someone looking out for her on their
walks. However the true purpose of these day walks is for Marianne
to closely study and examine Heloise's features, so when she returns
to the house at night, she can paint the portrait from memory.
Initially, these walks are almost in silence, but the women
continually get closer as time progresses.
Immediately before this film, I was in a screening of Andrzej Wajda's
1977 film “Man of Marble”, which is a two and a half hour film,
that is dense of historical Polish politics, and was something that I
really struggled with. I felt totally burnt out, and then as the
credits started rolling, I had to bolt from that cinema and straight
into my screening of “Portrait of a Lady on Fire” which was due
to start in around two minutes later. Being a sold out session, the
cinema was packed, and I had to sit in the very front row, to the
left of the screen. It was the most terrible spot to watch a film,
and yet even from this vantage point and feeling burnt out to the
extreme, I was still totally blown away by how great “Portrait of a
Lady on Fire” was. Right from the opening frame, I was totally
entranced, and my attention never wavered from the screen until the
film finished some two hours later (which flew by too).
This is one of the most beautiful and heartbreaking romances I have
ever seen in cinema. The first half is just sublime, with the two
girls sharing time together but barely saying a word to one another.
Everything is done in looks and observations. The subjective point
of view shots are so perfect as the camera lingers over Heloise's
facial features, her neck, her ears, and her hair. While initially
these looks are innocent in nature, they soon change to looks of
desire, and suddenly the film becomes very sensual and incredibly
erotic, even though very little skin or actual sex is shown on
screen. The voyeuristic act of studying someone so intently, to
paint their visage, turns to a different kind of look where the
recipient of that look desires it to turn into touch. Once the girls
love is consummated, it becomes a powerful force between them, even
though their love affair takes place over only a few days. The
brevity of the affair is complimented by its intensity. It is the
kind of love that changes a person, and one that will never be
forgotten.
Whilst the main story is about these two girls, Marianne and Heloise,
there is also a third female character that is prominent as well, and
that is Sophie, Heloise's maid. She is the centre of a subplot to do
with an unplanned pregnancy that shows a bond between the women,
despite different levels of class. Her inclusion adds another extra
layer to an already magnificent film. What is interesting about this
film is that it is a romance from a female point of view. Most movie
romances are shown via the male gaze but here it is the female gaze
and it is a completely different feel. Men express love more in
terms of sexuality, whereas women do so in terms of sensuality. The
distinction isn't massive but it certainly changes the romantic
dynamics which is why this film stands out so much. Even though all
the characters in “Portrait of a Lady on Fire” are women, so too
the writer/director, this isn't some on the nose feminist take on the
story, rather it is a subtle but very human and truthful depiction of
love from a woman's perspective.
I loved the performances by the two girls in the leads, as initially
they start out very cold and separate from one another, but as the
romance heats up, the actors begin to feed off one another to become
one. Adele Haenel plays Heloise and at the beginning of the film she
is totally detached and wary of Marianne. She borders on emotionless
as she never smiles, but her eyes betray her sadness at being forced
into a marriage she wants no part of. However, the performance
changes as the girl's relationship does, and soon Haenel is very
expressive with a beaming smile. Her outlook on the world has
totally changed now with love in her heart. Noemie Merlant is
excellent in the role of Marianne, and her performance is quite
different from Haenel's. With Merlant's character being a painter,
she appears more detail orientated. There is also a coldness too
from her at the beginning, but due to the seriousness in how she
takes her job as an artist. She is focused more on the surface
details, but again, this begins to change as the story goes on, and
she begins to let her emotions take hold and pour out of her when she
starts to fall in love. Again, this creates a warmth in Marianne
unseen prior.
Normally in my reviews, I always mention the visual style of a film
because it is the element I respond to the most, and I must say that
“Portrait of a Lady on Fire” is stunning to look at; it is truly
a feast for the eyes. Cinematographer Claire Mathon does an amazing
job of shooting the film using soft light that gives the film the
look of a painting itself. Each character appears to be colour coded
too with Marianne dressed in red and Heloise in green, which is a
nice visual touch. However, while I could tell the film was
beautifully shot, this was one aspect of the film where my seating in
the cinema hampered me, as I really struggled with depth within a
shot, so I actually believe the film is even more beautiful than I
can report. Needless to say, the costumes all look amazing, and I
loved the scene with the girls on the beach wearing scarves over
their mouths due to the wild winds; its a stunning image.
Speaking of brilliant scenes, “Portrait of a Lady on Fire” has
one of the most sublime scenes ever in it, when the three women head
to the beach at night. Around a camp fire, a large group of women
start singing a piece of classical music via acapella and it makes
the hair on your neck stand tall. It starts with hums and clapping
and before long the music is in full effect and......WOW!! The whole
scene is also so emotional too; you cannot help but be moved by it
all. This scene also then relates to the film's finale, which I have
to say is just perfect; it is devastating, heart wrenching and packed
to the gills with emotion, but it is perfect none the less. I think
it is probably the best ending to a film since Christian Petzold's
“Phoenix” from 2014. Another thing I really want to mention
before wrapping this review up is that I also loved the way
writer/director Celine Sciamma layered the Orpheus myth into the
narrative with devastating effect. It adds a layer of poetry to this
already brilliant film.
Overall, “Portrait of a Lady on Fire” is a stunning piece of
cinema and one that I cannot recommend enough. I actually had a lot
more I wanted to say about the film but decided to stop now and let
everyone just experience this masterpiece for themselves. It was
just announced as the winner of the audience award at this year's
MIFF, and it did not surprise me at all. You could feel while in the
cinema that everyone knew they were watching something special in
that moment, and the first thing I heard from behind me when the
credits began was a “wow” before the clapping started. The most
amazing thing about it is that I watched this film in the worst spot
possible, so there is a chance that on re-watch, my rating may go
even higher. “Portrait of a Lady on Fire” is exquisite and a
film you do not want to miss. It is intelligent, beautifully
crafted, emotion packed, and absolutely devastating, but it is also
sublime. DO NOT MISS IT!
4.5 Stars
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