Nominated for Best UK Feature
Q&A with Simon Ross (Director), David Griffiths (Writer/Producer) and Natalia Cordova-Buckley (Lead Actor), hosted by Andrew Douglas (Director of documentary and feature films, including The Amityville Horror)
Content Warnings – Adult Content
A psychological thriller with Hitchcockian eeriness, Sofia’s husband suffers a horrific brain injury in an accident she caused. Becoming obsessed with a mysterious portrait that resembles how he used to be, when it begins to terrorize her, she struggles to understand if it’s possessed or if she’s losing her mind.
After Alex (Ryan Kwanten, True Blood) is involved in a tragic accident, his wife Sofia (Natalia Cordova-Buckley, Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.) takes him to an old family villa in the countryside to try and jog his memory. Here, she becomes obsessed with the portrait of a man who closely resembles her husband. When strange things begin to happen in the house, Sofia becomes aware of the power the portrait may have over her. Is she losing her sanity?
A slow-burn psychological horror with a frightening jump scare when you least expect it, The Portrait boasts credible performances from the leads: Cordova-Buckley treads the fine line between caring and dejected wife, while Kwanten is suitably gloomy and mysterious. Boundless zest is offered by scream queen Virginia Madsen (Candyman), who is particularly enigmatic as cousin Mags, a relative who knows about the man behind the portrait. Confirming her Academy Award-nominee status, she has a blast playing the role.
Written by David Griffiths (William Friedkin’s The Hunted), this is the feature debut of Simon Ross, who also serves as editor. His editing skills are on full display in the initial montage, where the strokes of a brush on a painting are intercut with a brutal beating. An effective prelude for what is to come.
Mickey La Rosa
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