Film Challenge Week 25: A film from the 2010s

Film: Portrait of a Lady on Fire (2019)

Genre: Romance/Drama

Watched on: Kanopy

The potential heartache prevented me from sitting down to watch Portrait of a Lady on Fire, even though it had been on my watchlist for years. Sure enough, this hauntingly beautiful film filled my heart and simultaneously smashed it to smithereens.

Set in 1700s France, we follow an artist, Marianne, who is commissioned to paint a wedding portrait of Héloïse, a reluctant bride recently returned from a convent. Due to the refusal of Héloïse to sit for a painting, Marianne has to paint her without her knowing. As Marianne observes her throughout the day under the guise of a companion, a relationship blossoms.

First of all, this is an absolutely stunning film. The film stills would have done numbers on Tumblr with thousands of reposts in the early 2010s. There is a warm, film-like quality to the cinematography that makes the world feel so tranquil and romantic.

The cinematography further enhances the quiet moments between Marianne and Héloïse, which I adore in films. A subtle glance, a brush against one another's fingers, a small smile. These are the moments that truly capture the feelings that can never be fully articulated.

Spoiler alert, if you can't already guess, Marianne and Héloïse start developing feelings for one another. One of my main gripes with the romcoms released in the 2020s is the lack of chemistry between the romantic interests. You simply cannot convince me that Sydney Sweeney and Glen Powell in Anyone But You, Ryan Gosling and Emily Blunt in The Fall Guy, Sandra Bullock and Channing Tatum in The Lost City had any semblance of romantic tension whatsoever.

Adèle Haenel and Noémie Merlant were electric together. The yearning and tension between them were palpable through the screen.

Another aspect of the film that I sincerely enjoyed was the lack of male presence. The film focused solely on the female characters who feel like real people instead of side characters who help drive the hero's story. I love the portrayal of women and all of their complexities in this film, which is sadly severely lacking in so many films these days.

I'm glad that I finally watched this because it simply took my breath away. For those of you who haven't watched it, I'm honestly jealous. Portrait of a Lady on Fire is a cinematic masterpiece. I rated this 5 stars.