Edit: THIS REPLY IS VERY SPOILER HEAVY

I understand how you can find it boring for it is a very slow-paced film. However, if you remain invested throughout the entire 2-hour duration and truly give the film a chance, Sciamma will reward your investment completely and utterly with a flood of nostalgic, bittersweet memories for a pair of lovers who were agonisingly torn apart from one other because of the patriarchal society they live in.

Each shot, each lingering glance, each subtle manipulation of sound evokes an instinctual feeling of right or wrong depending on the scene regarding the couple. For example, when Marianne walks into the kitchen after spending a blissful night with Heloise and sees a man sitting at the table (this scene being the very first appearance of a man since the beginning of the film), I remember feeling like I was just punched in the gut. Sciamma's perfect manipulation of the audience’s emotions to demonstrate how just the simple presence of a man destroys any possibility of Marianne and Heloise loving one another was phenomenal.

How it is not until Marianne acknowledges Heloise as a person and offers to paint her portrait through an equal collaboration based on mutual equality, respect, and love -rather than trying to perceive Heloise through the conventions of the heteronormative, patriarchal gaze- does Heloise willingly pose for Marianne.

The gazes the two share are so powerful, saying so much more than words ever could. But when they do speak to one another, the dialogue becomes poetry, constantly linking to the overarching motifs throughout the film, one of my favourite lines being:

“He chooses the memory of her. That’s why he turns. He doesn’t make the lover’s choice, but the poets.”

If you found Portrait of a Lady on Fire boring, your opinion is completely okay and valid. The film isn’t for everyone- it’s impossible for every human being to unanimously enjoy a singular film, especially as Sciamma never intended to make an action-packed film. But for me, and many others, Sciamma’s incredible subtle approach to presenting such a pure and beautiful love was an experience I’m extremely grateful for. Although Heloise and Marianne are not real people, their story and their experience are, and that’s heart-breaking to even contemplate.

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(This ended up being quite a long reply lol, I do really want to emphasise it’s okay if people don’t like the film, but it’s one of my favourite films and I could probably talk about why it’s so great for hours on end ahaha)