So odd.

Intensely romantic, every exterior scene has this dreamy, undetermined character (the distinct texture in some of the images makes them look like paintings/embroidery). And it gets quite fucking astonishing at the end; a lighthouse, a storm, depicted as a grandiose dream, Cotton, waves and a threatening sky, his love, maybe a dream, a ghost or what the fuck, a place out there.. An amazing sequence. But I'm bothered by the haughty music going throughout the film, I must say.

A film about the artist's muse as a ghost, an intermittent siren whose visits become all-consuming, and eventually, an obsession. It's only after the artist has finished his first truly inspired & personal work that he no longer needs the muse as a crutch, for he has absorbed her.

Beautiful dreamlike imagery and compelling mysterious romance. The leads do a wonderful job but the star is undoubtedly the cinematography. At times it feels a little heavy handed, something not helped by the opening narration, but ultimately it didn't hamper my enjoyment.

#886

"William Dieterle's 1948 masterpiece Portrait of Jennie is not only an unabashedly romantic melodrama but also a fascinating ghost story." - Ed Gonzalez

A well-made, haunting romance that does drag at times, despite its short runtime.

Starts out looking like a masterpiece, but disappoints a bit at the end.

825

# 963

An unusual romance with a supernatural twist to it. The highlight is the cinematography, lots of picture-postcard moments with soft lighting. Cotten is always a pleasure and Barrymore's character is quite likeable. On the downside, the film drowns under the wall-to-wall Debussy score. Also, the dialogue and narration deals too heavily in useless romantic abstractions, but I suppose some people like that sort of thing. Overall, it's a nice, touching movie.

835

A haunting romance. Quite possibly the best in this fantasy romance subgenre, next to "Somewhere In Time" and "Brigadoon"