I found this an obsessive masterpiece...and became obsessed with it myself. As an Artist ,i was attracted by the pretention of it...and i must admit,that i was equally attracted by the beautiful Beart body...she is naked for long periods.
The quest is to capture something other than the physical, however,and that reaching for the intangible comes over as a brooding,scary thing.
Jane Birkin,as the wife,the original muse,sees herself being replaced ,quite literally painted over... but she remembers and understands why.
The "life drawing" sessions play out in real time ,and we see the hands of a genuine draftsman at work..but the discourse and fractious relationship between artist and model is where the real creative process resides.