If you like an original film, this movie is alike an art appreciation class. And trying to work out what everyone’s real agendas are make this an excellent choice.
THE STOLEN PAINTING centres on a valuable work of art thought lost during WWII. The owners and auctioneers work hard and tell a few lies to try and secure the best price, with finesse and humour, without ever overstating the case.
Inspired by true events, acclaimed writer/director Pascal Bonitzer’s sharp and engrossing dramedy, follows a self assured auctioneer whose professional and personal integrity, is challenged by the discovery of a long-lost masterpiece. Andrew Masson(Alex Lutz) a hotshot appraisers ears prick-up when he heard that a painting by Egon Schiele is in a factory worker’s home in Mulhouse. He travels to view the canvas in the company of his ex-partner Bettina( Lee Drucker).
It’s a sophisticated tale, compelling, mysterious and such an interesting character study.
The Figaro said “it’s sharp, elegant and funny, a rattling good yarn”. Entertaining, it certainly is. This is a gripping comedy fore sure in the art world where everyone bends the truth to suit their needs and in which the marketplace value of a painting is determined by more than its artistic merits. It features a gallery of well-drawn characters and delicious dialogue candidly looking at the ferocious world of the art market.
