A deliberately paced tale of repression and love; a love, brief like the cherry blossom, but the memory of which lingers long thereafter. With masterful cinematography and beautiful framing; each scene captured as if within a painting. Indelible images imprinted within the mind, like those memories, those fleeting moments, forever etched and intertwined within Heloise and Marianne. Each glance, each remembrance, a chance to reignite and relive that shared experience. Enhanced also by it's masterful use of sound; the lull and crashing of the ocean waves, a mirror to their internalised emotions. Put simply, Portrait Of A Lady On Fire is literally a work of art; only slightly blemished by a weak and unnecessary subplot.