The Portrait of a Lady

Evaluating the movie as an adaptation of a remarkable novel: all of the actors in the major roles absolutely nailed their characters--most especially Malkovich, who embodied Osmond's slithery, astute, malevolent manipulativeness, and Hershey, who was able to make me understand Madame... Full review

This is another one of thoughs films that could have been great, but fails with a splotchy script, Bad casting(Exept Malkovitch) and bad direction. I would not watch it if your a Nicole Kidman fan eather, because she's the most miss... Full review

Two words : Nicole Kidman ! Do I need to say anything else ? Nicole Kidman has to be the most beautiful woman in the world. Nicole Nicole Nicole Nicole Nicole Nicole.... Full review

As a Nicole Kidman fan, I should be saying how wonderful this film is. But, this time, it's anything but. This film is incredibly boring, and the direction is quite poor. Most of the time, Kidman has good judgement when it... Full review

I usually enjoy period films, but this one is far the worst I've ever seen. I think it's because of Nicole Kidman. She doesn't carry this film well at all, so watching her suffer was quite boring to me. Though the... Full review

Given the tenor of some of the other reviews posted here, I should start by making the extent of my disagreements clear.First, this film is unquestionably Jane Campion's best work to date, and it represents, in particular, a significant advance... Full review

After her great success with "The Piano" director Jane Campions next project was yet another costume drama, "The Portrait of a Lady". Like all James' books it's highly complex, with many characters and many layers. A difficult task in itself, it... Full review

Watching Jane Campion's The Portrait of a Lady is kind of like watching a David Lynch movie: it may not always work, but it never ceases to be interesting. After winning an Oscar for writing The Piano and becoming only... Full review

I did not really like the movie, at first. Nice, okay, but that was all, I thought.. Meanwhile I read the novel, watched the film again and again... And I love it more and more! Okay, NOTHING compares to "The... Full review

i had a really hard time watching this movie. one watches in slow motion as isabel archer willingly throws herself into the arms of the evil desmond. but jane campion pulls it off, and brilliantly. the pacing, camera angles, snippets of... Full review

Still, ``The Portrait of a Lady'' is a huge disappointment. Overdrawn `Portrait of a Lady' Campion loses her subtle touch Fortunately, the rest of the performances in ``Portrait'' are outstanding, especially Barbara Hershey's. ... Full Review

The Portrait of a Lady is a colossal bore. There's a nice moment from John Gielgud as a philosophical uncle who changes Isabel's fortune. But she continues in her obstinate ways, true only to herself, and the light goes out of the film. ... Full Review

Jane Campion's films are always visually stimulating, and "The Portrait of a Lady" is no exception. And because "The Portrait of a Lady" meanders too much and allows itself too many digressions, it ultimately loses its way. ... Full Review

Isabel Archer, the heroine of ``The Portrait of a Lady,'' is one of his most loved and tragic characters; everything she does is inspired by idealism, and leads to heartbreak and ruin. And it is well acted. ... Full Review

Conversely, I keep forgetting how much I've come to hate John Malkovich. But then she inherits a fortune from her uncle, and it's off to Florence, where she fails under the evil influence of the mysterious Ms. Merrill (Hershey) and the perfectly skeezey Mr. Osmond (Malkovich). ... Full Review

THE PORTRAIT OF A LADY: Period drama.Starring Nicole Kidman, John Malkovich, Barbara Hershey, Martin Donovan, John Gielgud, Shelley Winters, Shelley Duvall and Mary- Louise Parker. ... Full Article

Tuesday December 24, 1996 "The Portrait of a Lady" is a marriage of opposites, a potent joining of the dispassionate psychological complexity of the novelist admirers called the Master and an assured and assertive director who relishes the intensity film... ... Full Article

Now it's down to the wire - and if the Oscar race looks confused to you, cheer up: It's no less bewildering to the studios releasing the movies. ... Full Article

Great and evident artistry shapes this film version of the Henry James novel The Portrait of a Lady.Yet the end result perplexes as much as it fascinates. ... Full Article

Jane Campion's much-heralded, elegantly dressed adaptation of the Henry James novel about a woman's frustrated search for love was a resounding box-office bomb due to its length, slow pace and the curse of having an ugly poster (reproduced on the... ... Full Article