Director Pascal Bergamin’s British comedic drama Portraits of Dangerous Women begins with a crazy situation that digs deeper as the tale unfolds. Steph (Jeany Spark) is driving with her father Jon (Mark Lewis Jones) as her passenger, careening wildly down a narrow single lane in the English countryside. She is having an emotional breakdown, while Jon fears for his life from her driving. He asks her to slow down and points out that parts appear to be falling from her car. In a distracted moment, she hears a loud thump and they stop to learn that she and the car behind her have struck and killed a dog being walked by Ashley (Yasmin Monet Prince). The car behind Steph is driven by Tina (Tara Fitzgerald). Somehow, this accident brings all four characters together to discuss art. Jon, as it happens, is an art dealer, and Ashley is an artist.
What follows is a series of vignettes, loosely connected by the characters. Jeany Spark as Steph rambles on nervously, reminiscent of the manic chatter on Absolutely Fabulous. Jon is the calming paternal figure, and the other characters in their orbit float in and out in humorous moments. Some of the action doesn’t make a great deal of sense. For example, A police officer insists Jon feed her a meal before she’ll discuss the theft of Jon’s paintings. However, in the mix there are authentic moments of connection, happy and sad, throughout the film.
A man and a woman caught in a moment of surprise and suspicion.
“…a crazy situation that begins with the death of a dog and digs deeper as the tale unfolds…”
Before going further, the inciting incident must be dealt with. Having a comedy begin with a driver killing a dog is a misfire, at least for U.S. audiences. Dog lovers here will spend the whole film feeling bad for the pup. John Wick got away with the murder of a puppy by having the protagonist pursue merciless vengeance for four movies. Every baddie that hits the pavement earned his fate in payback for the puppy. This film doesn’t pay off in that way.
I learned something last year about the English and dogs. On a bike trip in France, I overheard a Brit complaining to his wife about dogs being allowed on the hotel patio. His wife replied, “Americans are even worse. They sleep with their dogs!” Well, yes, we do. They are family members. So, running over a dog in the first few minutes of a comedy is not optimal. Further, Ashley shows very little emotional distress over the death of the dog, reacting more like someone angry that property has been damaged. The soundtrack is grating during this incident, as light, whimsical notes play over the action, cueing the audience to find the situation funny, when it’s not. The film has redeeming qualities after this, but a viewer must work to get to them. If you persist, however, your patience will be rewarded.
The production quality is good, but the pace drags. The strength of Portraits of Dangerous Women is in the performances. The plot is confused and doesn’t go anywhere, but the characters are brilliantly delivered. One can only imagine what would be possible with the same ensemble if they had a more solid script. The performances in this case, save the film.
A film called Portraits of Dangerous Women would have been better served by being written by women, but Bergamin and co-writer Stephan Teuwissen manage to build an experience that, while inconsistent and slow, still delivers dry, dark humor and drama.
"…full of moments of dry, dark humor"
