(The only other time we hear music is when Héloïse and Marianne accompany Sophie to a gathering of local women who sing "La Jeune Fille en Feu," a composition written specifically for the film with lyrics by Sciamma and melody by electronic producer Para One.). She wrote the lyrics herself, and her Tomboy collaborator/electronic producer Para One wrote the music with Arthur Simonini. Enjoy the videos and music you love, upload original content, and share it all with friends, family, and the world on YouTube. The camera mimics Marianne's viewpoint as she observes Héloïse from the tentative outset of their friendship, through their love affair, and up until the ending that has been leaving viewers shaken, so flush it is with emotion. Marianne (the truest definition of a Renaissance woman) sits down at the nearby harpsichord and begins to play Vivaldi’s Violin Concerto. Listen to all your favourite artists on any device for free or try the Premium trial. Marianne is commissioned to paint the wedding portrait of Héloïse, a young woman who has just left the convent. It’s one of the most visceral final scenes in a film I’ve ever seen. Read more. Their apprehension of one another eventually softens into mutual tenderness, but Marianne's perspective remains the most dominant -- she's the one who is responsible for translating Héloïse's visage into art, after all. © 2020 Paste Media Group. Watching those sharp scenes arrive in a film otherwise devoid of a conventional score was a skin-tingling experience. In it, Héloïse looks softer than she did in the one Marianne painted. It’s utterly shocking to hear the strange chant after more than an hour of almost no music at all, but that’s what makes it so timely. She hasn’t. Portrait of a Lady on Fire has been celebrated as a remarkable example of the female gaze at work. These women are seen only through each others' eyes and the intensity of their regard for one another is astonishing. "Portrait of a Lady on Fire" (2019 release from France; 120 min.) We hear music only a handful of times throughout the movie, and each instance underlines an intense emotional moment between the painter Marianne (Noémie Merlant) and her hesitant subject/eventual lover Héloise (Adèle Haenel). Winner of a coveted Cannes prize and one of the best reviewed films of the year, PORTRAIT OF A LADY ON FIRE solidifies Céline Sciamma as one of the most exciting filmmakers working in the world today. Music is sparingly used in Portrait of a Lady on Fire -- there are only two pieces in the entirety of the film -- but it still plays a crucial role in connecting the heroines. Directed by Céline Sciamma. In total, Marianne and Héloïse only spend about two weeks in each other's company, and in that period they transform from reluctant companions into friends into lovers. Portrait de la jeune fille en feu (Bande originale du film) Para One, Arthur Simonini . Portrait of a Lady on Fire, the new costume drama from French writer-director Céline Sciamma, is the kind of richly intoxicating movie that compels you to talk like this. Portrait of a Lady on Fire has something of Alfred Hitchcock – actually two specific Hitchcocks: Rebecca, with a young woman arriving at a mysterious house, haunted by … The first time it's just Héloïse's image. Music is sparingly used in Portrait of a Lady on Fire -- there are only two pieces in the entirety of the film -- but it still plays a crucial role in connecting the heroines. Sciamma intense eye for detail, making every single symbol matter in her meticulous masterpiece, mounts to an unforgettable, exquisite ending. Summary: France, 1760. The work is an image of Orpheus and Eurydice, depicting the moment just as Orpheus has turned around to gaze at his beloved, who reaches out for him as she is being dragged back to the underworld. Portrait Of A Lady On Fire is about a private love language created by two women and the works of art, literature and music that help it to find its fullest expression. Héloise replies: “Courir” (“Running”). The movie's last shot is long and fairly simple. Helpful. 'Portrait of the Young … She submits paintings to museums under her father’s name. "Yes, I painted it many years ago. In its way, the natural sound is a score and punctuates the beats of the film. Both women have agency, but they know that their time together is limited. Soundtrack Credits . Marianne is at a gallery, standing watch over a painting of hers she submitted in her father's name so it could be exhibited. "Orpheus and Eurydice is a myth that has been looked at by feminists a lot, because it’s basically about how the male gaze can kill you," she said. She stops right before the edge and says something about how she’s always dreamed of that exact moment. The promise of seeing a full orchestra is one of the few things that Héloïse says would entice her to get married. As the two women orbit one another, intimacy and attraction grow as they share Héloïse’s first moments of … If Marianne's painting is her depiction of herself as the legendary poet deciding to turn around, the following moment finds Héloïse as Eurydice telling her Orpheus to make the move. Sciamma forwent original compositions for this, her fourth full-length picture, which takes place in the late 18th century, and it proved to be a smart move. This classical music piece was made even more beautiful and powerful through the soul expression of "The Portrait of a Lady on Fire". The other major musical moment occurs just after the halfway mark of the movie, when Marianne and Héloise attend an all-girls bonfire somewhere deep in the forest of this island (Extroverts will have FOMO watching). 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