Portrait of a Lady on Fire

Céline Sciamma's striking period tale is an utterly arresting slow burner. In 1760, artist Marianne (Noémie Merlant) arrives on a remote island in Brittany where she's been commissioned to paint reluctant bride-to-be Héloïse (Adèle Haenel). But as the wilful Héloïse has eluded all previous portrait attempts, Marianne is forced to pose as her companion, making mental sketches during the day and working on her picture at night. Eventually, with all those snatched glances on their long walks, a passionate romance evolves between the two women. This is a sophisticated and highly cinematic tale of gazing, desire and social constraint, played perfectly by the leads and filmed as if itself an exquisite painting. Sciamma's screenplay is consciously subtle and the soundtrack unobtrusive, but Claire Mathon's vivid camerawork ensures the story's emotions remain clear, heightened and, at times, rapturous. With elements of the surreal and supernatural dotted in among the erotic, the film's panoply of extraordinary images adds up to a haunting melancholic masterclass.