The Portrait of a Lady

MOVIE #1,977 • SCORE 6/10 • 09.18.24
SERIES: JANE CAMPION DIRECTOR FOCUS

This movie isn't THAT old but damn if this amazing cast doesn't look shockingly fresh-faced (it's quite the assortment: Viggo Mortensen, Christian Bale, and of course Nicole Kidman in the lead, among them). It’s Oscar bait at first/cursory glance but there's something a tad off. The 48% RT score actually piqued my interest. Like The Piano, this excels when Campion embraces the weird or unexpected (especially given the expectations for a period piece Henry James story). Masturbation dream sequence with sick special effects? Sure...

Slipping in a random, almost experimental film in the middle? Why not…


The movie does turn a little stale after that odd interlude, trying to make good on its Oscar bait promise, perhaps.

It was such an interesting double feature with Malcolm X (if you have six spare hours at hand, I recommend it). Whereas that film, over an hour longer, picked up steam and earned its length, this one feels like it could have ended without further consequence at any point in the final 90 minutes or so. Maybe blame the source material for that? Either way, it’s not quite 48% bad but I don’t need to watch it again.

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CHRONOLOGICALLY
⫷ MOVIE #1,976 - (YOU ARE HERE) - MOVIE #1,978 ⫸

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The Portrait of a Lady is a 1996 British-American film directed by Jane Campion and adapted by Laura Jones from Henry James' 1881 novel of the same name. The film stars Nicole Kidman, Barbara Hershey, John Malkovich, Mary-Louise Parker, Martin Donovan, Shelley Duvall, Richard E. Grant, Shelley Winters, Viggo Mortensen, Valentina Cervi, Christian Bale, and John Gielgud. It received two nominations at the 69th Academy Awards: Best Supporting Actress (Hershey) and Best Costume Design (Janet Patterson). It was released on August 23, 1996.