ARTEMISIA Directed by Agnes Merlet Controversy is swirling around "Artemisia," French filmmaker Agnes Merlet's study of the early career of Italian painter Artemisia Gentileschi, who is celebrated by contemporary feminists for the strides she made for women in the male-dominated art world of the 17th century. Both Merlet and her critics -- fronted by Gloria Steinem -- agree on Artemisia's importance both as an artist and as a heroine. What seperates the two camps is Merlet's attitude toward Artemisia's relationship with Agostino Tassi, whose reputation as a Lothario, some say, was far more deserved than his acclaim as a painter. "Using the few historical records remaining and her own imagination Merlet creates a fresh interpretation of (Artemisia's) life," says the publicity material from Miramax Films, which is distributing the film. In writer-director Merlet's mind, the story of Artemisia and Tassi is one of love thwarted. Barely 17, Artemisia (played with the right combination of innocence and fire by Valentina Cervi) prevails upon her father Orazio (Michel Serrault) to let her study art with his friend Tassi (Miki Manojlovic), a Baroque painter of some renown. But in the early 1600s, this proves to be a dicey arrangement: The church forbids women to paint the figure of the male nude and generally discourages feminine participation in the arts as a rule. Artemisia refuses to heed such taboos, even though it means sacrificing her virginity to the worldly Tassi. Out of this violation of the teacher-student relationship comes a deep and all-consuming passion shared by both partners, both for art and for each other. But when Orazio learns of the affair, she charges Tassi with raping his daughter and a lascivious trial results, complete with nuns who attempt to determine how many times Artemisia has had sex and finger-twisting tortures to get answers from witnesses. Monica Lewinski had better hope Ken Starr doesn't screen this picture and get ideas. For what it is, essentially a steamy and well-made period-piece, "Artemisia" plays fairly effectively. There's some heavy erotic content between Cervi and Manojlovic that almost earned the film a dreaded NC-17 rating, but Merlet also manages to put forth the theory that Artemisia's entire career grew out of this early heartbreak and the scandal that followed it. Artist June Wayne, who supports Steinem's position against the movie, disagrees. "Merlet has turned Artemisia's life into just another hot pillow story," Wayne told the Los Angeles Times. "The film is a bodice-ripper that misses everything important about this woman--and aesthetically she did break ground." Wayne and Steinem are particularly offended by Merlet's romanticization of the bond between Artemisia and Tassi, but the conflicted emotions that drive them -- Artemisia adores her lover but fears her father's wrath, while the more experienced Tassi seems to realize the relationship can never work out -- make for absorbing drama. Indeed, the biggest disappointment in "Artemisia" comes at the end, when a rolling title tells us that after the trial ended Artemisia went on to marry, have a daughter and study in Rome (possibly disguised as a man, according to some sources). At the time of her death, she was running her own workshop in Naples and was earning a living in her chosen profession. That part of the story would have been at least as interesting as the sex-scandal Merlet has chosen to focus on and would probably have given its filmmakers far fewer headaches. B
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