Winner of Best Screenplay and the Queer Palm at Cannes.
Céline Sciamma’s striking 18th-century tale of romantic obsession burns bright with female desire and the craft of a masterful filmmaker.
In 18th century France a young painter, Marianne, is commissioned to do the wedding portrait of Héloïse without her knowing. Therefore, Marianne must observe her model by day to paint her portrait at night. Day by day, the two women become closer as they share Héloïse’s last moments of freedom before the impending wedding.
Working from a deceptively simple narrative, Sciamma tightens the emotional screws with devastating precision, while Merlant and Haenel (who appeared in the director’s debut Water Lillies) explore their characters’ emotionally overwhelming relationship with heartbreaking clarity.
“Céline Sciamma has brought a superbly elegant, enigmatic drama that compels a shiver of aesthetic pleasure and fear.” – The Guardian
“An exquisitely executed love story that’s both formally adventurous and emotionally devastating.” – The Hollywood Reporter
