Portrait of a Marriage
Portrait of a Marriage
| 19 September 1990 (USA)
SEASON & EPISODES
  • 1
  • Reviews
    SunnyHello Nice effects though.
    Comwayon A Disappointing Continuation
    ChicRawIdol A brilliant film that helped define a genre
    Maidexpl Entertaining from beginning to end, it maintains the spirit of the franchise while establishing it's own seal with a fun cast
    MzBreezy12 *spoilers*I for one don't know much about the true story. I did some what enjoyed the film. Here's a few things I have noticed;1. The bravery of them being together was interesting. 2. The rape scene was weird because they don't talk about it after. 3. Vita was abusive and I didn't think that was right. 4. Violets character seemed so immature at times. Always shaking.5. She didn't seem like she would sleep with Denys but I guess she did?6. But why would Vita get that mad (though she did lie to her if she did)? 7. Started not to like Vita and her double standards character. 8. It's weird her(Vita's) son wrote about it. Of course I want them to stay together so maybe that's why I'm upset they ended such a passionate relationship.Otherwise it did keep me interested. It was quite long and some scenes were drawn out. Amazing actors and actresses.
    Bob Taylor The BBC miniseries issued on DVD have been sustaining me this winter. I found this one at my public library; it had been eluding me for many years. I am a fan of Janet McTeer and Cathryn Harrison, and found the account of the love affair between Vita Sackville-West and Violet Trefusis to be fairly engrossing, although overlong (at almost four hours). The problem is that these people are only moderately interesting--we remember Vita, if we remember her at all, as a character from Virginia Woolf's Orlando, while Harold is known as the author of diaries from the 1930's in which he recounts his experiences with Oswald Mosley and other famous people. Harold and Vita are bit-players on the stage of Europe between the wars, not principal players.I was entertained by the two female leads, who were brought to life successfully by Penelope Mortimer's screenplay. Cathryn Harrison was especially vivid in her portrayal of the more emotional and headstrong Violet. David Haig was excellent as the repellent Harold, a man who has his cake and wants to eat it too (in other words, have Vita as his wife and enjoy men on the side). Peter Birch as Trefusis was no more interesting than an illustration on the cover of a biscuit tin.
    napseptember Watched this TV movie way back in Stockholm, Sweden in 1991. I would not have believed it could happen in real life, if it had been a fiction, but it is not. It set me wondering for a bit. I like it a lot, though. The portrayal of Vita Sackville -West by Janet McTeer was very convincing , almost real, while Cathryn Harrison's portrayal of Violet Trefusis was interesting. The whole episode was truly heartbreaking and showed the complexities of the characters involved. Credit be given to Penelope Mortimer for the screenplay and the director Stephen Whittaker. The movie was also rather successful in capturing the scenes and the social stratification of England and France of the early 20th.century.
    ISnoozy I have only seen this once and it was an unforgettable experience. This TV series on Masterpiece Theater pulled out all the stops and was an emotionally draining but fantastic and daring in its depth and depiction of homosexuality and all its complications. I would love to see this again.