‘Portrait of a Lady on Fire’,written and directed by Céline Sciamma, paints a beautiful love story between two young women in 18^th century France. Marianne (Noémie Merlant), daughter of a celebrated painter, is summoned to an isolated island in Brittany by a wealthy countess (Valeria Golino) who is desperate to marry her daughter to a Milanese nobleman. The reluctant bride-to-be, Héloïse (Adèle Haenel), having just returned from the convent, resists the marriage, and refuses to pose for the painting. Marianne must find a way to paint the wedding portrait in secrecy while posing as her paid companion. Soon, however, the painter’s observation turns into something more. Passion brews between the two women as they share sustained gazes of longing, tender touches, and stolen glances in exquisite tension. Héloïse finally complies with posing, and we witness artist and subject forging a creative collaboration of love and a star-crossed romance. Unfortunately, due to the eighteenth-century close-mindedness, their love is doomed outside the remote island from the very start.

Ultimately,‘Portrait of a Lady on Fire’ is a romance. But it also puts great emphasis on the memorialising power of art, how a painting brush can capture the spirit of emotions, the spirit of love, even if unfed. Watching the clips of Marianne painting feels like falling in love with Héloïse. The act of creating an immortal painting allows the two women to observe gestures and come to know each other profoundly. The portrait, therefore, becomes a testament to the love the women shared.

The French screenwriter and director, Céline Sciamma’s determination to move beyond received ideas of filmmaking is reflected in ‘Portrait of a Lady on Fire’ as well. In 2019, the film won the Queer Palm at Cannes Film Festival, becoming the first film directed by a woman to win the award.  

Apart from the main plot of Marianne and Héloïse’s delirious romance, Sciamma included a subplot of the maid Sophie’s (Luàna Bajrami) at-home abortion which represents female solidarity and argues modern-day politics. The story includes multiple fantastic references that might slip the attention at first watch. For example, when years later Marianne stumbles upon a portrait that shows evidence of Héloïse’s everlasting love and longing. It’s a painting of her, holding a slightly opened book on page 28. The very page where she sketched her nude self-portrait after they spent the night together. The message of the slow-burn romance is intensified by prolonged scenes and extreme close-ups of the two protagonists. For instance, the opening scene of the painter’s reminiscing and mournful expression immediately made my stomach drop, already predicting a melancholic ending. The long shots of precise and passionate acting and picturesque landscapes allow the audience to savour and interpret the emotions and atmospheres.

Even though the film is set about 200 years ago, the story is extremely modern. The romance encap-sulates a deep intimacy between two people whose love is condemned due to societal expectations. It’s also a great representation of how art prevents our most deep-rooted emotions from turning into ash. By the end of the movie, we get to experience all of them: crying for the freedom of Héloïse, feeling the burning passion through Marianne’s art, and laughing with the careless girls playing cards.  ‘Portrait of a Lady on Fire’ is the perfect choice for anyone with a sensitivity to art, passion, and contemporary issues.