The Portrait of a Lady (film)
From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia
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The Portrait of a Lady is a 1996 film adaptation of Henry James's novel The Portrait of a Lady directed by Jane Campion.
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.
Plot
The film tells the story of Isabel Archer (Kidman), a young woman of independent means whose innocence ultimately sees her manipulated by her 'friend' Madame Merle (Hershey) and the devious Gilbert Osmond (Malkovich).
The film is relatively faithful to the novel but caused controversy with an interpolated dream sequence in which Isabel has an erotic fantasy involving all of her suitors.