The Woman in Gold is based on the true story about a woman, Maria Altmann (Helen Mirren), and her lawyer, Randol Schoenberg (Ryan Reynolds), as they attempt to reclaim ownership of an extremely valuable painting (along with a few more) form the Austrian government nearly fifty years after it was stolen by the Nazis. This film has three distinct parts that intertwine through the duration of the show. First, there is a family dynamic that focuses on the emotional stress of the current situation on everyone's personal lives. There is a strong connection between Randol and Maria that grows over time and is given time to grow in these segments. Second, there are flashbacks that dive deeper into Maria's past and emphasize the importance of the artwork as well as explore parallels between the past and the present. Finally there is the trial itself, which is where the action of the conflict lies. This is the least important, yet still necessary part of the story. The percentage of time given to these segments would be around 40/40/20, respectively. While you might be surprised how much of the story takes place in the past, it really does drive the plot. There are many white-knuckle scenes and heart wrenching moments that really add to the film. The past is just as important as the present in this movie, and that is exactly what the film is trying to say. Helen Mirren, as always, was amazing in this film. She was subtle and drove many of the scenes that required raw emotion. Ryan Reynolds was also very good and his role in this film might have been his best performance (from what I have seen). Actually, all of the actors did a fantastic job here. Everyone was on there A-Game and gave it everything they had. There was great chemistry between Mirren and Reynolds which made their characters' connection even more compelling. Reynolds was able to subtly change his character as the case slowly changed his motivations. While, yes, there are a few clichéd scenes that were put in there for emotional levity and drama, but they don't really take much away, if anything. This was an excellent film and I highly recommend it.
176 Reviews
The real woman in gold
blanche-222 November 2015
Helen Mirren and Ryan Reynolds star in "Woman in Gold" from 2015, a true story about the quest of Maria Altmann to recover art stolen from her family by the Nazis in Vienna, the seat of anti-Semitism in Europe.
I just want to point out, to answer some of the reviews, that this is not a documentary, it's a movie. Movies combine events, change them around, omit them. No one wants to watch a tedious film that recognizes that it took a huge amount of time to get to the Supreme Court. If you want the actual, factual story of Maria Altmann's journey, you will need to read about it or see one of several documentaries. Films are meant to pique our interest.
Altmann speaks with a young attorney, Randy Shoenberg, about recovering The Woman in Gold, a painting by Klimt that is considered a symbol of Vienna. Klimt in fact painted a series of stunning portraits of Altmann's aunt, Adele Bloch-Bauer, who died of meningitis at the age of 44.
In her will, she asked her husband Ferdinand, who had seen the writing on the wall in Vienna and fled to Prague, to donate the paintings to the Austrian State Gallery.
Although he has just started a new job, Shoenberg travels to Vienna to see the will. Along the way there are flashbacks of Vienna in the '30s, where the Bloch-Bauer family lived in opulence. When the Nazis came to their home, they stripped the place of everything valuable - and there was a lot -- and put the family under house arrest.
Maria and her husband, an opera singer, manage to escape in a harrowing scene. In flashbacks, Maria is played by the remarkable Tatiana Maslany, the star of "Orphan Black," who looks incredibly like a brunette Mirren.
This is a touching, beautifully told story of one man's sacrifice and determination and a woman facing up to her past in order to seek justice.
Helen Mirren is one of my favorite actresses - here, she is a vibrant, energetic octogenarian who finds the struggle for the painting uncomfortable - several times, meeting a roadblock, she is ready to wash her hands of it, but Schoenberg won't let her. It represents her family to her, and some uncomfortable memories. You can see all of that in Mirren's multilayered performance.
Reynolds is excellent as a young man who believes in taking a chance - - he started and failed in his own law practice - and in this case, going for the gold, despite the fact that he has a wife (Katie Holmes), a baby, and one on the way, and an intolerant boss. It doesn't faze him and when Maria wants to quit, he is furious.
I disagree that there was no connection between them. In fact, there is a deep one. The quest for the painting comes to represent to him what it means to Maria
I highly recommend this film. There are tons of movies about the horrors perpetrated on Jews by the Nazis. The recovery of stolen art is one part of that horror. "You see a painting," she tells a group. "I see my aunt."
I just want to point out, to answer some of the reviews, that this is not a documentary, it's a movie. Movies combine events, change them around, omit them. No one wants to watch a tedious film that recognizes that it took a huge amount of time to get to the Supreme Court. If you want the actual, factual story of Maria Altmann's journey, you will need to read about it or see one of several documentaries. Films are meant to pique our interest.
Altmann speaks with a young attorney, Randy Shoenberg, about recovering The Woman in Gold, a painting by Klimt that is considered a symbol of Vienna. Klimt in fact painted a series of stunning portraits of Altmann's aunt, Adele Bloch-Bauer, who died of meningitis at the age of 44.
In her will, she asked her husband Ferdinand, who had seen the writing on the wall in Vienna and fled to Prague, to donate the paintings to the Austrian State Gallery.
Although he has just started a new job, Shoenberg travels to Vienna to see the will. Along the way there are flashbacks of Vienna in the '30s, where the Bloch-Bauer family lived in opulence. When the Nazis came to their home, they stripped the place of everything valuable - and there was a lot -- and put the family under house arrest.
Maria and her husband, an opera singer, manage to escape in a harrowing scene. In flashbacks, Maria is played by the remarkable Tatiana Maslany, the star of "Orphan Black," who looks incredibly like a brunette Mirren.
This is a touching, beautifully told story of one man's sacrifice and determination and a woman facing up to her past in order to seek justice.
Helen Mirren is one of my favorite actresses - here, she is a vibrant, energetic octogenarian who finds the struggle for the painting uncomfortable - several times, meeting a roadblock, she is ready to wash her hands of it, but Schoenberg won't let her. It represents her family to her, and some uncomfortable memories. You can see all of that in Mirren's multilayered performance.
Reynolds is excellent as a young man who believes in taking a chance - - he started and failed in his own law practice - and in this case, going for the gold, despite the fact that he has a wife (Katie Holmes), a baby, and one on the way, and an intolerant boss. It doesn't faze him and when Maria wants to quit, he is furious.
I disagree that there was no connection between them. In fact, there is a deep one. The quest for the painting comes to represent to him what it means to Maria
I highly recommend this film. There are tons of movies about the horrors perpetrated on Jews by the Nazis. The recovery of stolen art is one part of that horror. "You see a painting," she tells a group. "I see my aunt."
Compelling History
krocheav12 April 2016
'Woman in Gold' makes for a dazzling movie experience (even if at times it may leave you questioning it's authenticity). Having not been an admirer of Mirren's early screen work - she seems to have become better with age (well, for me anyway), I was taken with her portrayal of Maria Altman from start to finish (as also in 'The Queen'). Ryan Reynolds gives good support as the young Lawyer taking on a case above his station. Reynolds, whose style is somewhat reminiscent of a young Kevin Costner, plays the Randol Schoenberg part with conviction.
London born director Simon Curtis gives the proceedings an easy to watch style and with the help of documentary editor Peter Lambert, they keep the viewer engaged throughout. Curtis also gets to direct his American wife (in a guest style role) Elizabeth McGovern, who has since made England her home. First time feature screenplay writer Alexi Kaye Campbell has fashioned an interesting interpretation of the writings of Altman and Schoeenberg's own life experiences, looking back at yet another of humanity's all time low past atrocities - although as mentioned, for some, certain sections of the screenplay may not always ring true (?)
Cinematographer Ross Emery (Matrix) gets a chance to prove he's also good without the help of tons of big budget CGI. It's hard to tell who did what with the music score, credited to both Martin Phipps and Hans Zimmer but, it's pleasing in an unobtrusive manor. Design Guru's, Andrew Ackland-Snow and brothers Dominic and Giles Masters (Harry Potter) with the help of others, ensure it looks good - perhaps while also getting a chance to strut their stuff without being drenched in CGI.
As a minor point, some location settings in Austria seemed a little too devoid of people to give an accurate representation, still, it's an amazing human story, both informative and entertaining. It should please most sophisticated audiences, while letting us reflect on an episode from our dark past.
London born director Simon Curtis gives the proceedings an easy to watch style and with the help of documentary editor Peter Lambert, they keep the viewer engaged throughout. Curtis also gets to direct his American wife (in a guest style role) Elizabeth McGovern, who has since made England her home. First time feature screenplay writer Alexi Kaye Campbell has fashioned an interesting interpretation of the writings of Altman and Schoeenberg's own life experiences, looking back at yet another of humanity's all time low past atrocities - although as mentioned, for some, certain sections of the screenplay may not always ring true (?)
Cinematographer Ross Emery (Matrix) gets a chance to prove he's also good without the help of tons of big budget CGI. It's hard to tell who did what with the music score, credited to both Martin Phipps and Hans Zimmer but, it's pleasing in an unobtrusive manor. Design Guru's, Andrew Ackland-Snow and brothers Dominic and Giles Masters (Harry Potter) with the help of others, ensure it looks good - perhaps while also getting a chance to strut their stuff without being drenched in CGI.
As a minor point, some location settings in Austria seemed a little too devoid of people to give an accurate representation, still, it's an amazing human story, both informative and entertaining. It should please most sophisticated audiences, while letting us reflect on an episode from our dark past.
A beautiful,serene movie with outstanding acting by Helen Mirren.
peterp-450-29871621 September 2015
"Mrs. Altmann, it would seem that if your case goes forward, world diplomacy will collapse, and you will be solely responsible."
"Woman in Gold" is a wonderful and sometimes touching film. Not because of the topic as this was already highlighted in "The Monuments Men", but because of the brilliant rendition Helen Mirren is showing here. A role that suits her perfectly. A distinguished elderly lady who's a descendant of a wealthy Jewish family and who was forced to flee to the United States during Austria's annexation with Germany. She left behind everything: family, personal things and valuable belongings that were owned by the family Altmann. The resentment towards the German ruler obviously is still as lively now as it was in the past. And despite her intention never to set foot on Austrian soil again, she still makes the overseas trip to reclaim the famous painting "Portrait of Adèle Bloch-Bauer" by Gustav Klimt, since she's the rightful heir. That this invaluable piece of art was worth a fortune, is swept aside by her as irrelevant. In the end the painting has been sold to a renowned New York art gallery for a mere 135 million dollars. I'm sure at that moment it wasn't irrelevant anymore.
The film is actually twofold. Obviously there's a less successful part and an exciting second part. The first part, and least successful, is about the court case Maria Altmann starts against the Austrian state, who consider the previous mentioned painting as a national treasure. The fact that it was stolen by the Nazis and actually ended up in their hands unlawfully, was a side issue apparently. So the first thing we are presented with, is an old fashioned courtroom drama with Ryan Reynolds as the young lawyer Randol Schönberg, grandson of the famous Austrian composer Arnold Schönberg and also descendant of a family of war refugees.
The fascinating and interesting part of the film focuses on the past and present of the widow Altmann. A metered mixture of images of this zestful character these days and the painful memories weighing on her shoulders. These memories are displayed in old-fashioned-looking sepia-colored flashbacks. A sketch full of contrasts of the still traumatized Maria and the conditions in which she lived during the occupation. The humiliations and fear. When she gets back in Vienna after so many years, Mary's facial expression proves that this past still weighs heavily on her.
Helen Mirren is a kind of mixture of P. L. Travers and Queen Elizabeth. A lady behaving according to the etiquette from the upper middle class who keeps certain values and norms still alive. A stiff Victorian granny who suffers from a trauma and is seeking for justice. A kind of Miss Marple, but then still in possession of an elegant well-preserved beauty. Without any effort Mirren surpasses the young Reynold on screen. Despite his immense importance in the complex legal procedure, the character pales in comparison with the engaging, witty and sometimes tragic person performed by Mirren. Despite the fact that now and then she brings forward corny sounding quotes, she remains a credible and worthy character.
Of course you can cite that the Austrian people are portrayed in a one-sided and caricatural way and look like an anti-Semitic nation that supports the Nazi-regime. Personally, I'm convinced that it's pretty close to being true and that it's more an instinctual survival tactic than that they were supporting that ideology. But that's another discussion. Maybe the relationship between Maria Altmann and her aunt Adèle could have been worked out a bit deeper. But the acting of Mirren and the tragic images of the past create an unparalleled film filled with tragedy and justice.
More reviews here : http://bit.ly/1KIdQMT
"Woman in Gold" is a wonderful and sometimes touching film. Not because of the topic as this was already highlighted in "The Monuments Men", but because of the brilliant rendition Helen Mirren is showing here. A role that suits her perfectly. A distinguished elderly lady who's a descendant of a wealthy Jewish family and who was forced to flee to the United States during Austria's annexation with Germany. She left behind everything: family, personal things and valuable belongings that were owned by the family Altmann. The resentment towards the German ruler obviously is still as lively now as it was in the past. And despite her intention never to set foot on Austrian soil again, she still makes the overseas trip to reclaim the famous painting "Portrait of Adèle Bloch-Bauer" by Gustav Klimt, since she's the rightful heir. That this invaluable piece of art was worth a fortune, is swept aside by her as irrelevant. In the end the painting has been sold to a renowned New York art gallery for a mere 135 million dollars. I'm sure at that moment it wasn't irrelevant anymore.
The film is actually twofold. Obviously there's a less successful part and an exciting second part. The first part, and least successful, is about the court case Maria Altmann starts against the Austrian state, who consider the previous mentioned painting as a national treasure. The fact that it was stolen by the Nazis and actually ended up in their hands unlawfully, was a side issue apparently. So the first thing we are presented with, is an old fashioned courtroom drama with Ryan Reynolds as the young lawyer Randol Schönberg, grandson of the famous Austrian composer Arnold Schönberg and also descendant of a family of war refugees.
The fascinating and interesting part of the film focuses on the past and present of the widow Altmann. A metered mixture of images of this zestful character these days and the painful memories weighing on her shoulders. These memories are displayed in old-fashioned-looking sepia-colored flashbacks. A sketch full of contrasts of the still traumatized Maria and the conditions in which she lived during the occupation. The humiliations and fear. When she gets back in Vienna after so many years, Mary's facial expression proves that this past still weighs heavily on her.
Helen Mirren is a kind of mixture of P. L. Travers and Queen Elizabeth. A lady behaving according to the etiquette from the upper middle class who keeps certain values and norms still alive. A stiff Victorian granny who suffers from a trauma and is seeking for justice. A kind of Miss Marple, but then still in possession of an elegant well-preserved beauty. Without any effort Mirren surpasses the young Reynold on screen. Despite his immense importance in the complex legal procedure, the character pales in comparison with the engaging, witty and sometimes tragic person performed by Mirren. Despite the fact that now and then she brings forward corny sounding quotes, she remains a credible and worthy character.
Of course you can cite that the Austrian people are portrayed in a one-sided and caricatural way and look like an anti-Semitic nation that supports the Nazi-regime. Personally, I'm convinced that it's pretty close to being true and that it's more an instinctual survival tactic than that they were supporting that ideology. But that's another discussion. Maybe the relationship between Maria Altmann and her aunt Adèle could have been worked out a bit deeper. But the acting of Mirren and the tragic images of the past create an unparalleled film filled with tragedy and justice.
More reviews here : http://bit.ly/1KIdQMT
A great film that fell through the cracks
Okonh0wp23 February 2017
My original perception was that this was an indie flick that only played in the art houses because it was an artsy film. the truth is that it's a great film that simply didn't get the luck of the draw when it came with mass distribution. Woman in Gold would be at home with any of the Oscar nominees and contenders and would easily be considered more of an outright crowd pleaser than a film like Danish Girl (which got nominated in acting categories) or Brooklyn (which did make the final cut for Oscar).
The film is based on an eight-year-long quest by a California-based lawyer of Austrian descent and a longtime family friend from the motherland (the prior relationship between the characters is erased in the adaptation process) to reclaim confiscated art by the Nazis.
The film's main strength is that it's neither a holocaust story nor is it a standard courtroom drama, but it's a fresh new take on both genres. As for the former, the film feels fresh through its specificity to the Austrian experience and the specificity of a wealthy family. The film is more relatable to the experience of anyone descended of an immigrant who had to leave the old regime. As for the latter, the film's main challenge wasn't showing a guy having his flashy day in court but rather a long slog as it was taking a toll on his life. The film handles this challenge in pacing admirably.
More than that, the film flies on the strength of its central relationship. You never think of Ryan Reynolds (best known for subversive leading men or a smug action stars) and Helen Mirren as occupying the same universe but the chemistry between the two goes a long way towards making this film transformative.
The film is a powerful one about remembrance and loss. It teaches that one can't fix the past, but healing those wounds is a noble cause.
The film is based on an eight-year-long quest by a California-based lawyer of Austrian descent and a longtime family friend from the motherland (the prior relationship between the characters is erased in the adaptation process) to reclaim confiscated art by the Nazis.
The film's main strength is that it's neither a holocaust story nor is it a standard courtroom drama, but it's a fresh new take on both genres. As for the former, the film feels fresh through its specificity to the Austrian experience and the specificity of a wealthy family. The film is more relatable to the experience of anyone descended of an immigrant who had to leave the old regime. As for the latter, the film's main challenge wasn't showing a guy having his flashy day in court but rather a long slog as it was taking a toll on his life. The film handles this challenge in pacing admirably.
More than that, the film flies on the strength of its central relationship. You never think of Ryan Reynolds (best known for subversive leading men or a smug action stars) and Helen Mirren as occupying the same universe but the chemistry between the two goes a long way towards making this film transformative.
The film is a powerful one about remembrance and loss. It teaches that one can't fix the past, but healing those wounds is a noble cause.
Blending art, history, justice, and identity
ferguson-631 March 2015
Greetings again from the darkness. The responsibility of the filmmaker when the project is "based on a true story" is elevated when the story has significant historical relevance and blends such elements as art, identity, justice and international law. Add to those the quest of a remarkable woman whose family was ripped apart by Nazi insurgents, and more than a history lesson, it becomes a poignant personal story.
Helen Mirren portrays Maria Altmann, the woman who emigrated to the United States by fleeing her Austrian homeland during World War II, and leaving behind her beloved family and all possessions. After the death of her sister, Ms. Altmann becomes aware of the family artwork stolen by the Nazi's during the invasion. This is not just any artwork, but multiple pieces from famed Austrian artist Gustav Klimt including "Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer". See, Adele was Maria's aunt, and the stunning piece (with gold leaf accents) has become "the Mona Lisa of Austria", while hanging for decades in the state gallery.
The story revolves around Maria's partnering with family friend and upstart attorney Randol Schoenberg (Ryan Reynolds) to take on the nation of Austria and reclaim the (extremely valuable) artwork that was seized illegally so many years ago. They are aided in their mission by an Austrian journalist (played by Daniel Bruhl) who is fighting his own demons. The seven-plus year legal saga is condensed for the big screen and we follow Maria and Randol as they meet with the Austrian art reclamation committee, a federal judge (played by the director's wife Elizabeth McGovern), the U.S. Supreme Court (Jonathan Pryce as Chief Justice), and finally a mediation committee back in Austria. But this is not really a courtroom drama it's a personal quest for justice and search for identity. What role does family roots and history play in determining who we are today? It's the age old question of past vs. present, only this is seen through the eyes of a woman who has survived what most of us can only imagine.
Director Simon Curtis (My Week with Marilyn) uses startling flashbacks (with Tatiana Maslany as the younger Maria) to provide glimpses of Maria's childhood through her marriage and subsequent escape. We get to know her family, including some scenes featuring Aunt Adele (Antje Traue), and Maria's father and uncle (Henry Goodman, Allan Corduner). We understand this family's place in society and just how dramatically they were impacted by the Nazi takeover.
Helen Mirren delivers yet another exceptional performance and manages to pull off the snappy lines without an ounce of schmaltz, while also capturing the emotional turmoil Ms. Altmann endures. Director Curtis and writer Alexi Kaye Campbell round off some of the rough edges and inject enough humor to prevent this from being the gut-wrenching process it probably was in real life. This approach makes the film, the story and the characters more relatable for most movie goers and it's quite an enjoyable look at a fascinating woman and a pretty remarkable underdog story.
Helen Mirren portrays Maria Altmann, the woman who emigrated to the United States by fleeing her Austrian homeland during World War II, and leaving behind her beloved family and all possessions. After the death of her sister, Ms. Altmann becomes aware of the family artwork stolen by the Nazi's during the invasion. This is not just any artwork, but multiple pieces from famed Austrian artist Gustav Klimt including "Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer". See, Adele was Maria's aunt, and the stunning piece (with gold leaf accents) has become "the Mona Lisa of Austria", while hanging for decades in the state gallery.
The story revolves around Maria's partnering with family friend and upstart attorney Randol Schoenberg (Ryan Reynolds) to take on the nation of Austria and reclaim the (extremely valuable) artwork that was seized illegally so many years ago. They are aided in their mission by an Austrian journalist (played by Daniel Bruhl) who is fighting his own demons. The seven-plus year legal saga is condensed for the big screen and we follow Maria and Randol as they meet with the Austrian art reclamation committee, a federal judge (played by the director's wife Elizabeth McGovern), the U.S. Supreme Court (Jonathan Pryce as Chief Justice), and finally a mediation committee back in Austria. But this is not really a courtroom drama it's a personal quest for justice and search for identity. What role does family roots and history play in determining who we are today? It's the age old question of past vs. present, only this is seen through the eyes of a woman who has survived what most of us can only imagine.
Director Simon Curtis (My Week with Marilyn) uses startling flashbacks (with Tatiana Maslany as the younger Maria) to provide glimpses of Maria's childhood through her marriage and subsequent escape. We get to know her family, including some scenes featuring Aunt Adele (Antje Traue), and Maria's father and uncle (Henry Goodman, Allan Corduner). We understand this family's place in society and just how dramatically they were impacted by the Nazi takeover.
Helen Mirren delivers yet another exceptional performance and manages to pull off the snappy lines without an ounce of schmaltz, while also capturing the emotional turmoil Ms. Altmann endures. Director Curtis and writer Alexi Kaye Campbell round off some of the rough edges and inject enough humor to prevent this from being the gut-wrenching process it probably was in real life. This approach makes the film, the story and the characters more relatable for most movie goers and it's quite an enjoyable look at a fascinating woman and a pretty remarkable underdog story.
Another golden performance by Helen Mirren
rogerdarlington19 September 2016
The lady in question is Adele Bloch-Bauer who was the subject of a magnificent painting, deploying lots of gold, by the Austrian artist Gustav Klimt. Following the Anschuss of 1938 when Germany took over Austria, this painting was one of many, many artefacts seized by the Nazis from Jewish families in occupied Europe.
The film tells the story - a little fictionalised - of Adele's niece Maria Altmann who escaped from Vienna to live in California and, during the 1980s as an octogenarian, pursued an audacious claim to take back this painting and other Klimt works from the Austrian Government. Helen Mirren is brilliant as Altmann in another distinguished performance in a sparkling career during which she has played everything from "The Queen" to an assassin (RED"), while Ryan Reynolds is surprisingly good as her lawyer Randy Schoenberg in a role a million miles from "Green Lantern" or "Deadpool".
There's a lot going on in this film: legal battles over the art work with some classic courtroom scenes, flashbacks (in sepia colours) to Altmann's earlier life in 1930s Vienna, and an evolving relationship between the irascible Altmann and the idealistic Schoenberg, both descendants of famous Austrians. This is not the kind of film that was ever going to be a major box office draw but it is certainly worth a home viewing.
The film tells the story - a little fictionalised - of Adele's niece Maria Altmann who escaped from Vienna to live in California and, during the 1980s as an octogenarian, pursued an audacious claim to take back this painting and other Klimt works from the Austrian Government. Helen Mirren is brilliant as Altmann in another distinguished performance in a sparkling career during which she has played everything from "The Queen" to an assassin (RED"), while Ryan Reynolds is surprisingly good as her lawyer Randy Schoenberg in a role a million miles from "Green Lantern" or "Deadpool".
There's a lot going on in this film: legal battles over the art work with some classic courtroom scenes, flashbacks (in sepia colours) to Altmann's earlier life in 1930s Vienna, and an evolving relationship between the irascible Altmann and the idealistic Schoenberg, both descendants of famous Austrians. This is not the kind of film that was ever going to be a major box office draw but it is certainly worth a home viewing.
"Woman in Gold" is a work of art in its own right.
CleveMan6611 April 2015
When I review a movie, I ask myself but one question: How entertaining is it? Of course, such a thing is always a matter of opinion and depends on an individual's personal background, personality, tastes, preferences, interests, experiences, and so forth. As a reviewer who likes all kinds of movies and hopes these reviews will be helpful to all kinds of moviegoers, I'm as objective and open-minded as I can be. Regardless of its genre, its subject matter or its background, all I expect from a movie is to enjoy it. This attitude allows me the freedom to like movies of any and all kinds, regardless of whether others think that I'm "supposed" to like them or not. Did the movie's comedy make me laugh, did its a drama draw me in and make me care, did its thrilling moments
thrill me? Etc., etc. You get the point. I expect a film to entertain me – to make me FEEL something. But the best movies also inform, educate, enlighten and uplift. Oh, and bonus points for originality, creativity, and technical and artistic excellence. When you have the pleasure of seeing a film with all of those characteristics, it is a "must see". It is a treasure. It is
art. "Woman in Gold" (PG-13, 1:49) is such a film.
"Woman in Gold" is based on the true story of Maria Altmann, who, as a young woman (played by Tatiana Maslany of "Orphan Black" fame) fled her beloved Austria as the Nazi noose was tightening around the necks of her Jewish countrymen. Encouraged by her family and with her new husband by her side, she left behind the people, places and possessions she loved. One of those possessions was a Gustav Klimt painting of her dear aunt Adele (Antje Traue), a painting which would soon be taken by the Nazis and, after World War II, end up in a Vienna art museum where it became so revered that one character calls it "the Mona Lisa of Austria".
When Maria (played as an old woman by Dame Helen Mirren) loses her sister, she discovers some letters that, along with 1990s changes in Austrian law, make her think that she might reclaim what once belonged to her family. She enlists the help of Randol Schoenberg (Ryan Reynolds), a friend's son, to look into the matter for her. Randy is a young attorney who has just started a new job and whose wife (Katie Holmes) is concerned about the impact of a lengthy case on their growing family, but he becomes obsessed with Maria's cause. In Austria, Randy gains the assistance of a local journalist (Daniel Brühl), but this long and complicated bureaucratic and legal struggle may prove to be too much for any of them, or even all of them. If you ever start to think that this lengthy and emotionally taxing fight is merely about the extremely high value of the painting or even one woman's need for closure, you'll remember Maria ending a conversation about her motivations with "and then there's justice." "Woman in Gold" has something for everyone. It's an unusually dramatic history lesson, a riveting drama, an involving mystery, a fascinating legal thriller and a touching story of families and friendships. All members of the very talented cast bring their "A game", the writing is excellent and the editing is superb. All these factors come together in a narrative which transitions seamlessly between the story's present and its past, doing so as effectively as I've ever seen it done. The opening of the movie, a short scene involving the creation of the painting, effortlessly but effectively communicates how special the painting of the title really is. The film shows the plight of the Jews in Europe more personally than any film since "Schindler's List", but without being overwrought. It also sheds light on what it meant for a country to capitulate to the Nazis as well as the long-term effects of that chapter in history. Many scenes in the movie are dramatic and suspenseful, but the portion of the film in which Maria and her husband escape Austria is on par with the climactic scenes in Oscar-winning films like "Argo" and "The Sound of Music". Whichever genre or cubby hole that professional critics choose to place this movie in, it rises above most films to which it might be compared.
Like a great painting, a great film is a joy and an honor to see for yourself. I hope that "Woman in Gold" is remembered when all those gold statuettes are handed out this next awards season. The worth of the movie is, in the end, only my opinion, but this film informed me, educated me, enlightened me, uplifted me, and, as a wonderful work of art, it entertained me. "A+"
"Woman in Gold" is based on the true story of Maria Altmann, who, as a young woman (played by Tatiana Maslany of "Orphan Black" fame) fled her beloved Austria as the Nazi noose was tightening around the necks of her Jewish countrymen. Encouraged by her family and with her new husband by her side, she left behind the people, places and possessions she loved. One of those possessions was a Gustav Klimt painting of her dear aunt Adele (Antje Traue), a painting which would soon be taken by the Nazis and, after World War II, end up in a Vienna art museum where it became so revered that one character calls it "the Mona Lisa of Austria".
When Maria (played as an old woman by Dame Helen Mirren) loses her sister, she discovers some letters that, along with 1990s changes in Austrian law, make her think that she might reclaim what once belonged to her family. She enlists the help of Randol Schoenberg (Ryan Reynolds), a friend's son, to look into the matter for her. Randy is a young attorney who has just started a new job and whose wife (Katie Holmes) is concerned about the impact of a lengthy case on their growing family, but he becomes obsessed with Maria's cause. In Austria, Randy gains the assistance of a local journalist (Daniel Brühl), but this long and complicated bureaucratic and legal struggle may prove to be too much for any of them, or even all of them. If you ever start to think that this lengthy and emotionally taxing fight is merely about the extremely high value of the painting or even one woman's need for closure, you'll remember Maria ending a conversation about her motivations with "and then there's justice." "Woman in Gold" has something for everyone. It's an unusually dramatic history lesson, a riveting drama, an involving mystery, a fascinating legal thriller and a touching story of families and friendships. All members of the very talented cast bring their "A game", the writing is excellent and the editing is superb. All these factors come together in a narrative which transitions seamlessly between the story's present and its past, doing so as effectively as I've ever seen it done. The opening of the movie, a short scene involving the creation of the painting, effortlessly but effectively communicates how special the painting of the title really is. The film shows the plight of the Jews in Europe more personally than any film since "Schindler's List", but without being overwrought. It also sheds light on what it meant for a country to capitulate to the Nazis as well as the long-term effects of that chapter in history. Many scenes in the movie are dramatic and suspenseful, but the portion of the film in which Maria and her husband escape Austria is on par with the climactic scenes in Oscar-winning films like "Argo" and "The Sound of Music". Whichever genre or cubby hole that professional critics choose to place this movie in, it rises above most films to which it might be compared.
Like a great painting, a great film is a joy and an honor to see for yourself. I hope that "Woman in Gold" is remembered when all those gold statuettes are handed out this next awards season. The worth of the movie is, in the end, only my opinion, but this film informed me, educated me, enlightened me, uplifted me, and, as a wonderful work of art, it entertained me. "A+"
Helen Mirren and Ryan Reynolds on an art crusade.
Ramascreen29 March 2015
A WWII true story drama that deserves to be told on the screen. Helen Mirren gives yet another astounding performance and I was pleasantly surprised by Ryan Reynolds. What would attract audiences to WOMAN IN GOLD is its David Vs. Goliath story, everybody loves a story about an underdog taking on the impossible and that's what WOMAN IN GOLD essentially is.
Directed by Simon Curtis who gave us "My Week With Marilyn" four years ago, Helen Mirren plays an elderly Jewish woman named Maria Altmann who sixty years after she fled Vienna, Austria to escape the Nazis, starts her uphill legal battles to retrieve a valuable painting that was seized by the Nazis, a painting that is now in the possession of a museum in Austria. A young lawyer, Randy Schoenberg (Ryan Reynolds) helps Maria in her quest that receives resistance from the Austrian establishment. All the while her quest forces Maria to finally confront her past WWII provides a ton of stories for cinemas to depict, they will never run out of WWII materials, this one tackles the fact that thousands of artwork and paintings, that were stolen by Nazis, to this day, have never been restored to their rightful owners. Maria's story is just one of the thousands, and I think it's fascinating that WOMAN IN GOLD basically says that yes, sometimes we need to leave the past where it belongs, the past, but when the past committed a great deal of injustice on us, one can't just easily dismiss it and simply use 'the past' as an excuse to not pursue justice. It's obvious too from Helen Mirren's performance, Helen understands that Maria carries a certain guilt all these years, guilt that she blames herself for abandoning her family and abandoning their possessions. Mirren is excellent at presenting us this tortured conflicted soul, caught between being haunted by the past and the desperate need to forget and move on. And Ryan Reynolds holds his ground as the young persistent lawyer. I think people don't give Ryan enough credit because he's a heartthrob, but the man can pass as a struggling family man with strong conviction. I think WOMAN IN GOLD is an important film, unfortunately I doubt that it would be remembered during award season mainly because we're still fresh from another Weinstein Company's drama, "Philomena" a couple of years ago which also showed an elderly woman accompanied by a young lad, both on a crusade for the truth.
Read more at Ramascreen.Com
Directed by Simon Curtis who gave us "My Week With Marilyn" four years ago, Helen Mirren plays an elderly Jewish woman named Maria Altmann who sixty years after she fled Vienna, Austria to escape the Nazis, starts her uphill legal battles to retrieve a valuable painting that was seized by the Nazis, a painting that is now in the possession of a museum in Austria. A young lawyer, Randy Schoenberg (Ryan Reynolds) helps Maria in her quest that receives resistance from the Austrian establishment. All the while her quest forces Maria to finally confront her past WWII provides a ton of stories for cinemas to depict, they will never run out of WWII materials, this one tackles the fact that thousands of artwork and paintings, that were stolen by Nazis, to this day, have never been restored to their rightful owners. Maria's story is just one of the thousands, and I think it's fascinating that WOMAN IN GOLD basically says that yes, sometimes we need to leave the past where it belongs, the past, but when the past committed a great deal of injustice on us, one can't just easily dismiss it and simply use 'the past' as an excuse to not pursue justice. It's obvious too from Helen Mirren's performance, Helen understands that Maria carries a certain guilt all these years, guilt that she blames herself for abandoning her family and abandoning their possessions. Mirren is excellent at presenting us this tortured conflicted soul, caught between being haunted by the past and the desperate need to forget and move on. And Ryan Reynolds holds his ground as the young persistent lawyer. I think people don't give Ryan enough credit because he's a heartthrob, but the man can pass as a struggling family man with strong conviction. I think WOMAN IN GOLD is an important film, unfortunately I doubt that it would be remembered during award season mainly because we're still fresh from another Weinstein Company's drama, "Philomena" a couple of years ago which also showed an elderly woman accompanied by a young lad, both on a crusade for the truth.
Read more at Ramascreen.Com
Well done and entertaining on a serious subject
rapan-227 March 2015
just saw WOMAN IN GOLD and i must be of an entirely different demographic than some other reviewers, but i enjoyed it mightily. The audience obviously did also, as there was laughter and applause at various spots. The acting is wonderful and the story quite straightforward but done with both heart and a sense of humor. there is excellent use of flashback and lovely shots of Vienna. Angelenos will get a kick out of some of the recognizable LA landmarks. I have no idea of what the requested ten lines means, whether it is sentences or actual lines. It's a lovely movie. Not sophisticated but informative, entertaining and thought provoking with excellent acting from both the principals and supporting actors.
Better than expected
Luigi Di Pilla3 September 2016
It was a good choice after I have read all the positive critics here. This is a very emotional true story that is well told and never boring. There were good flashbacks where all the reconstructed scenes were originally and perfectly done. I felt to be in the movie. All the actors and especially Ryan Reynolds delivered a great job. Helen Mirren put as usual a special humor note into the ambiance. It seems this role is suited to her and nobody else. The music was wonderful and I had even some tears. This movie is much more better than the other ones about the stolen Jewish paintings from the Nazi. See it. 7/10
If you like this genre of movie don't miss The Pianist, Der Letzte Zug or Die Fälscher.
If you like this genre of movie don't miss The Pianist, Der Letzte Zug or Die Fälscher.
Perfection
rmart-46-62696416 April 2015
This movie is just flawless in any category; acting, cinematography, sound, locations, story flow. Helen Mirren is of course the star but everybody else involved were perfect also. Telling the young woman's life story, their hair-raising escape from Nazi occupation, and at the same time describing the red tape involved in trying to get back stolen family property by the Nazi's 50 years prior is just a stunning accomplishment. But, the icing on the cake, which they could have ignored, is how most of the population of Austria (and other European countries) colluded with the Nazi's.
This is such an incredible movie, it should be required screening in high schools, it should never be forgotten what happens when hate and prejudice team up with apathy. No graphic violence is required to get the message across - classy all the way.
This is such an incredible movie, it should be required screening in high schools, it should never be forgotten what happens when hate and prejudice team up with apathy. No graphic violence is required to get the message across - classy all the way.
When personality is squandered for linear storytelling
StevePulaski6 April 2015
"Woman in Gold" tells an extraordinary story with the utmost ordinariness in style and structure. It uses what I fear will become the newfound "Philomena" cliché of a stubborn, moody old white lady getting helped by a square, middle-aged white man who grows to appreciate a walk of life he apparently never even knew existed before. The only difference was "Philomena" worked because of strong chemistry between its leads and a story that was told in an impacting manner, articulating the core of the events within proper emotional and narrative boundaries. "Woman in Gold" is what happens when all of that is traded for what looks to be a "collect the check" job on all fronts, where everyone involved just seems more concerned with collecting their pay rather than telling a story with the significance and heart it not only bears but deserves.
The film revolves around Maria Altmann (Helen Mirren), a Jewish refugee living in Los Angeles, who seeks the help of a lawyer named Randol Schoenberg (Ryan Reynolds) to recover Gustav Klimt's iconic painting of her aunt, known as Portrait of Adele Block-Bauer I. During the time of World War II, the painting was confiscated by the Nazis and now hangs in a museum in Vienna, Austria, where it is as renowned as the Mona Lisa. Maria and Randol travel to Vienna to try and convince the Austrian government to allow Maria to claim the painting, but the government has made it virtually impossible for anyone who isn't wealthy beyond their wildest imagination to sue or challenge the government. Eventually, the two return to America, following a breathless bout of walking in circles, to discover that they can sue the Austrian government on American soil due to the painting being licensed for commercial use in America. What entails is an exhausting legal battle that is taken all the way to the Supreme Court.
"Woman in Gold"'s first immediate problem is it can't do anything without oversimplifying. Within the first fifteen minutes of the film, Maria meets Randol, she tell him the story of her aunt and Klimt's painting, and they are off to Vienna in a flash. The legal battle that apparently takes so many months to progress and move to the Supreme Court is covered within about five minutes in montage and, when we do see glimpses inside the courtroom, it's the same kind of artificial, theatrical environment we've grown accustomed to in American movies. Finally, every wall the characters run into in their quest to obtain what is rightfully theirs always seems to pose a way out that's almost too clean to exist. Every way around the Austrian government is portrayed as a flash-in-the-pan, revolutionary moment that makes you wonder why these two bright individuals didn't think of that before they started (IE: the cost of suing the Austrian government being in the millions - shouldn't they have known that as a "worst case scenario" event?).
It's also worth noting that it's impossible for a dynamic to be achieved between both Mirren and Reynolds because screenwriter Alexi Kaye Campbell doesn't write a line of dialog that's purpose is to paint both of these individuals as characters and not narrative vessels. Every conversation these two have between one another is about the case or about the history; none of dialog works to humanize either party and it isn't until the end we realize that due to how little we're impacted by the outcome of it all. This gives "Woman in Gold" a dreary and dull personality, and makes it even more disappointing to see two great actors squandered for the sake of persistent plot progression.
"Woman in Gold" is one of several films to be released over the last two years that concerns art, the creation of art, and to whom the art should belong to. Last year, George Clooney's "The Monuments Men" was a misguided effort, but found success in at least detailing the process of obtaining valuable works that the Nazis had stolen, a subject that's only now really circulating into the mainstream. In addition, we also had Tim Burton's "Big Eyes," which, while a bit different, found itself infusing style and visual flair into a story that probably wouldn't have clicked had no personality been injected into the screenplay and the visual aesthetic. "Woman in Gold" is another film that takes a hugely important topic and squanders it, and, now more than ever, we need not only another film on Nazi art thieves, but a good one at long last.
The film revolves around Maria Altmann (Helen Mirren), a Jewish refugee living in Los Angeles, who seeks the help of a lawyer named Randol Schoenberg (Ryan Reynolds) to recover Gustav Klimt's iconic painting of her aunt, known as Portrait of Adele Block-Bauer I. During the time of World War II, the painting was confiscated by the Nazis and now hangs in a museum in Vienna, Austria, where it is as renowned as the Mona Lisa. Maria and Randol travel to Vienna to try and convince the Austrian government to allow Maria to claim the painting, but the government has made it virtually impossible for anyone who isn't wealthy beyond their wildest imagination to sue or challenge the government. Eventually, the two return to America, following a breathless bout of walking in circles, to discover that they can sue the Austrian government on American soil due to the painting being licensed for commercial use in America. What entails is an exhausting legal battle that is taken all the way to the Supreme Court.
"Woman in Gold"'s first immediate problem is it can't do anything without oversimplifying. Within the first fifteen minutes of the film, Maria meets Randol, she tell him the story of her aunt and Klimt's painting, and they are off to Vienna in a flash. The legal battle that apparently takes so many months to progress and move to the Supreme Court is covered within about five minutes in montage and, when we do see glimpses inside the courtroom, it's the same kind of artificial, theatrical environment we've grown accustomed to in American movies. Finally, every wall the characters run into in their quest to obtain what is rightfully theirs always seems to pose a way out that's almost too clean to exist. Every way around the Austrian government is portrayed as a flash-in-the-pan, revolutionary moment that makes you wonder why these two bright individuals didn't think of that before they started (IE: the cost of suing the Austrian government being in the millions - shouldn't they have known that as a "worst case scenario" event?).
It's also worth noting that it's impossible for a dynamic to be achieved between both Mirren and Reynolds because screenwriter Alexi Kaye Campbell doesn't write a line of dialog that's purpose is to paint both of these individuals as characters and not narrative vessels. Every conversation these two have between one another is about the case or about the history; none of dialog works to humanize either party and it isn't until the end we realize that due to how little we're impacted by the outcome of it all. This gives "Woman in Gold" a dreary and dull personality, and makes it even more disappointing to see two great actors squandered for the sake of persistent plot progression.
"Woman in Gold" is one of several films to be released over the last two years that concerns art, the creation of art, and to whom the art should belong to. Last year, George Clooney's "The Monuments Men" was a misguided effort, but found success in at least detailing the process of obtaining valuable works that the Nazis had stolen, a subject that's only now really circulating into the mainstream. In addition, we also had Tim Burton's "Big Eyes," which, while a bit different, found itself infusing style and visual flair into a story that probably wouldn't have clicked had no personality been injected into the screenplay and the visual aesthetic. "Woman in Gold" is another film that takes a hugely important topic and squanders it, and, now more than ever, we need not only another film on Nazi art thieves, but a good one at long last.
Fascinating story brought down a little by some cliches
AlsExGal26 August 2018
Thiis film is about an elderly Jewish woman, living in LA, who fled the Nazis Following the death of her sister, she attempts to reclaim the magnificent Klimt paintings, including the painting in the title, looted by the Nazis from her family home in Vienna and now in one of Vienna's great museums.
The film is about the woman's coming to terms with her past and the attempt to see justice done; and also about her young lawyer's growing awareness about his past. He is the grandson of the Austrian-Jewish composer Arnold Schoenberg, who also fled the Nazis.
I liked the film, which received mixed reviews. There are a few annoying cliches, particularly in the relationship between the young lawyer and his wife. Some reviewers said the film was a dull movie about a fascinating true story, but I didn't find it dull at all. Helen Mirren was excellent as the lead, Maria Altmann, who died in Los Angeles in 2011 at the age of 94.
The title painting now hangs in the Neue Galerie in New York City.
The film is about the woman's coming to terms with her past and the attempt to see justice done; and also about her young lawyer's growing awareness about his past. He is the grandson of the Austrian-Jewish composer Arnold Schoenberg, who also fled the Nazis.
I liked the film, which received mixed reviews. There are a few annoying cliches, particularly in the relationship between the young lawyer and his wife. Some reviewers said the film was a dull movie about a fascinating true story, but I didn't find it dull at all. Helen Mirren was excellent as the lead, Maria Altmann, who died in Los Angeles in 2011 at the age of 94.
The title painting now hangs in the Neue Galerie in New York City.
Justice is Done
annfromflag12 April 2015
Before seeing Woman in Gold, I read three to four reviews, ranging from "ordinary" to "extraordinary movie." I was more than curious, since I am an historian and secondary ed teacher, always looking for excellent historical films that remind us "why" we study history. This film presents a WWII story with superb storytelling. Woman in Gold is about a survivor of World War II, named Maria Altmann, a Viennese who wants a famous family painting by Gustav Klimt returned to her possession since it was stolen by the Nazis. She enlists the help of a family friend, who also has a WWII connection, although he is quite inexperienced for the challenge of taking on the Austrian government. The painting of her aunt is famous for its size, the gold leaf, and its early twentieth century modernity. Even if you are ignorant about art history, this "Mona Lisa" of Austria, the Woman in Gold, is recognizable to almost everyone else. Maria Altmann's connection to this stellar painting by Gustav Klimt is that it reminds her not only of her aunt, but the family, friends, and life style that she lost forever when she fled Vienna with little more than the clothes on her back. The fight she and Randy Schoenberg, yes - grandson of Arnold Schoenberg - are about to wage is insurmountable if you have studied recent Austrian attempts to conceal its Nazi past. Think Kurt Waldheim. Woman in Gold is told in two stories, one about the pursuit of justice, and the other flashbacks before and after the Nazis occupied Vienna, showing Maria's lost life. Edited together, you get enough background into the Holocaust to understand Maria Altmann's motivation to seek long-awaited justice not just for herself, but all the other people who lost everything with little to no hope of restitution. The director, screenwriter, set designer, and all the actors did a fabulous job of finding a balance between humor and poignancy. Woman in Gold complements those other wonderful WWII movies, like Downfall, Lucie Aubrac, The Pianist, by showing that WWII history is not dead, that new chapters are being written in the 21st century.
An interesting movie that deviates a fair amount from the historical facts
richard-178711 April 2015
This movie recounts the efforts of the niece of the woman portrayed in painter Gustave Klimt's famous "The Woman in Gold" to have it restored to her in the 1990s, after it had been looted by the Nazis during World War II and then hung for decades in the great Belvedere Art Museum in Vienna. I recall when Ms. Altmann undertook her quest through the courts but, fortunately, I did not remember how it went or the outcome, so all that could be a surprise for me.
I have since read the book that serves as a point of departure for this feature film, Anne-Marie O'Connor's *The Lady in Gold: The Extraordinary Tale of Gustav Klimt's Masterpiece, Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer*. I now know that this movie often departs from the facts, especially in recounting the efforts of Altmann and her lawyer, Schoenberg, to get the painting. That doesn't influence my view of the movie, but movie-goers should know that it is not a documentary.
For me, one of the two outstanding aspects of this movie is Mirrin's portrayal of Maria Altmann. When the script gives her even half a chance, she develops an interesting and complex character. After seeing her last year as the owner of a rural French restaurant in *The Hundred Foot Journey*, it was fascinating to see her as an Austrian refugee. I knew such people when I was growing up in Milwaukee in the 1950s and 60s, and I found her portrayal very convincing.
The other aspect that was sometimes but not always good was the script. Yes, there were times when it gave in to sentiment or just dawdled. But sometimes it made a real and successful effort to present its two main characters as more than just two-dimensional figures. For what it's worth, it makes both of them, and especially the lawyer, far more sympathetic than they appear to have been in real life.
There were things it could have developed more that would have made this a richer experience to watch:
1) Near the end, Maria recalls her father saying to her that when their family came to Vienna, they made an effort to fit in and contribute to the city. It would have been nice if that had been developed more. We see presumably non-Jewish Viennese watching with pleasure the Nazis' humiliation of Jews, but we get no sense of whether this came as a surprise to Maria's family, whether they felt totally integrated, etc.
2) Whether or not the real Austrian officials were officious and cold, it would have been more interesting if their representatives in the movie had been less stereotypical and given more chance to express the complexity of the issues they were defending. O'Connor's book does that.
3) It might also have been interesting to have some insight into the Jewish Austrain refugee community in Los Angeles, of which Schönberg (the composer grandfather of the lawyer) was so important a part. The lawyer is given no chance to speak about what it must have been like to grow up in that community, what was talked about, etc. When he and Maria visit the Holocaust Memorial in Vienna and he is so moved that he has to excuse himself to hide his emotions, that would have been a moment to let us know WHY he was so moved, what memories from his childhood the Memorial reawakened.
4) Near the end, when Maria recalls her aunt talking to her about the Klimt painting, Adele says she hopes that Maria, when she grows up, won't have to devote her life to superficial things. Given the surface glimmer of the painting in question, which seems to suggest something of the sort itself, the movie could have done a lot more with the implications of the painting as a depiction of a certain type of beautiful but ultimately superficial life. Was there a conflict between Maria's father's love of playing the cello, with its deep, rich sounds, and Klimt's use of gold leaf to portray Adele and her sad eyes? What was the culture like that Maria wanted the world to remember? If she is going to use the painting to make us remember it, what is the painting saying about that culture? That one line near the end of the movie should either have been cut or developed throughout the movie.
When I got home and thought about this, I remembered that Adele died in 1923. At that point Maria, born in 1916, was only 7. The Bloch-Bauers would have been driven from their Vienna home in 1938, when the Nazis took over Austria. All of which to say that, by 1938 Maria would have lived with her Aunt Adele only 7 years, but the painting 22 years. Much more could have been made of the relationship with her Aunt - there is really only that one scene at the end - and the role the painting played for Maria as a memento of her aunt and that relationship during the 15 years after Adele's death that Maria lived with the painting. Also how that very distinctive painting shaped Maria's memories of Adele.
It's true: as I develop this review, I am coming to realize that while the script has some good scenes in it, it really could have been a lot better developed.
Still and all, the movie held me, and sometimes moved me very much. Very frankly, I found it did a better job than *Monuments Men*, which deals with a similar topic - Nazi pillaging of art during World War II - but in a more diffuse way that focuses on the American efforts to rescue the art rather than the meaning the art had to some of its owners. In that sense, this is closer to *The Train*, which remains, to my mind, the best movie treatment of the topic.
I have since read the book that serves as a point of departure for this feature film, Anne-Marie O'Connor's *The Lady in Gold: The Extraordinary Tale of Gustav Klimt's Masterpiece, Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer*. I now know that this movie often departs from the facts, especially in recounting the efforts of Altmann and her lawyer, Schoenberg, to get the painting. That doesn't influence my view of the movie, but movie-goers should know that it is not a documentary.
For me, one of the two outstanding aspects of this movie is Mirrin's portrayal of Maria Altmann. When the script gives her even half a chance, she develops an interesting and complex character. After seeing her last year as the owner of a rural French restaurant in *The Hundred Foot Journey*, it was fascinating to see her as an Austrian refugee. I knew such people when I was growing up in Milwaukee in the 1950s and 60s, and I found her portrayal very convincing.
The other aspect that was sometimes but not always good was the script. Yes, there were times when it gave in to sentiment or just dawdled. But sometimes it made a real and successful effort to present its two main characters as more than just two-dimensional figures. For what it's worth, it makes both of them, and especially the lawyer, far more sympathetic than they appear to have been in real life.
There were things it could have developed more that would have made this a richer experience to watch:
1) Near the end, Maria recalls her father saying to her that when their family came to Vienna, they made an effort to fit in and contribute to the city. It would have been nice if that had been developed more. We see presumably non-Jewish Viennese watching with pleasure the Nazis' humiliation of Jews, but we get no sense of whether this came as a surprise to Maria's family, whether they felt totally integrated, etc.
2) Whether or not the real Austrian officials were officious and cold, it would have been more interesting if their representatives in the movie had been less stereotypical and given more chance to express the complexity of the issues they were defending. O'Connor's book does that.
3) It might also have been interesting to have some insight into the Jewish Austrain refugee community in Los Angeles, of which Schönberg (the composer grandfather of the lawyer) was so important a part. The lawyer is given no chance to speak about what it must have been like to grow up in that community, what was talked about, etc. When he and Maria visit the Holocaust Memorial in Vienna and he is so moved that he has to excuse himself to hide his emotions, that would have been a moment to let us know WHY he was so moved, what memories from his childhood the Memorial reawakened.
4) Near the end, when Maria recalls her aunt talking to her about the Klimt painting, Adele says she hopes that Maria, when she grows up, won't have to devote her life to superficial things. Given the surface glimmer of the painting in question, which seems to suggest something of the sort itself, the movie could have done a lot more with the implications of the painting as a depiction of a certain type of beautiful but ultimately superficial life. Was there a conflict between Maria's father's love of playing the cello, with its deep, rich sounds, and Klimt's use of gold leaf to portray Adele and her sad eyes? What was the culture like that Maria wanted the world to remember? If she is going to use the painting to make us remember it, what is the painting saying about that culture? That one line near the end of the movie should either have been cut or developed throughout the movie.
When I got home and thought about this, I remembered that Adele died in 1923. At that point Maria, born in 1916, was only 7. The Bloch-Bauers would have been driven from their Vienna home in 1938, when the Nazis took over Austria. All of which to say that, by 1938 Maria would have lived with her Aunt Adele only 7 years, but the painting 22 years. Much more could have been made of the relationship with her Aunt - there is really only that one scene at the end - and the role the painting played for Maria as a memento of her aunt and that relationship during the 15 years after Adele's death that Maria lived with the painting. Also how that very distinctive painting shaped Maria's memories of Adele.
It's true: as I develop this review, I am coming to realize that while the script has some good scenes in it, it really could have been a lot better developed.
Still and all, the movie held me, and sometimes moved me very much. Very frankly, I found it did a better job than *Monuments Men*, which deals with a similar topic - Nazi pillaging of art during World War II - but in a more diffuse way that focuses on the American efforts to rescue the art rather than the meaning the art had to some of its owners. In that sense, this is closer to *The Train*, which remains, to my mind, the best movie treatment of the topic.
Maslany and Mirren shine
Julesecosse13 January 2016
I thought that this was a very entertaining and informative film, which sets the scene naturally.
It was not overly dramatised or forced and with excellent performances; particularly from Helen Mirren and Tatiana Maslany who played the same character at different ages perfectly in harmony with each other; showing how history can change people from youthful optimism to pragmatism and a wistfulness for a glorious past.
History buffs will find it a fascinating foray into the glory of Vienna's past. Though art stolen by Nazis is a theme recently explored by movies such as The Monuments Men, this part of the Second World War has not been really explored by the movie industry; I am sure there are more stories to come. There have been a few movies about Austria and the Third Reich, the Sound of Music springs to mind. This one compares favourably with both the aforementioned films.
It was not overly dramatised or forced and with excellent performances; particularly from Helen Mirren and Tatiana Maslany who played the same character at different ages perfectly in harmony with each other; showing how history can change people from youthful optimism to pragmatism and a wistfulness for a glorious past.
History buffs will find it a fascinating foray into the glory of Vienna's past. Though art stolen by Nazis is a theme recently explored by movies such as The Monuments Men, this part of the Second World War has not been really explored by the movie industry; I am sure there are more stories to come. There have been a few movies about Austria and the Third Reich, the Sound of Music springs to mind. This one compares favourably with both the aforementioned films.
All That Glitters...
jadepietro23 April 2015
(Rating: ☆☆☆ out of 4)
This film is mildly recommended.
In brief: No Midas touch...a serious-minded film that only scratches the surface of its important subject.
GRADE: B-
It seems standard practice nowadays that whenever a film is touted "based on true events", it is far from true. Upon researching this biography of Adele Bloch-Bauer and her family, that much is true. The gold standard has been slightly devalued in this noble effort that tells its "true" story in the most melodramatic of ways. Woman in Gold simplifies an important issue (the ethical matter of stolen art during the Nazi reign) and tries to personalize this historic event with stick figures as its characters and the wobbliest of story as its source. While it certainly is engrossing fare, it's a foolhardy result.
Set in Vienna, the film centers on Klimt's masterwork, Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer I. Once owned by the family and taken away from this Jewish clan and now the property of the Viennese government, the painting is now the treasure in question. A legal fight ensues. In one corner stands our worthy contender, "Saint" Maria Altman (Helen Mirren), who if we are to believe, wants this artwork back in her possession for strictly personal reasons as the painting depicts her dearly beloved grandmother. Taking her case is a young idealistic lawyer, Randol Schoenberg (Ryan Reynolds). In the other corner are those nasty governmental bureaucrats who want to keep the work of art for its people as a symbol of patriotism and national pride. And the financial worth of the piece sure doesn't hurt either.
The painting becomes the MacGuffin in this film that brings on the conflict and unites both parties in their battle over ownership. Alexi Kaye Campbell's misbegotten screenplay sees the issue in only black and white terms, with its stilted arguments and painted in the broadest of brush-strokes that never resemble anything remotely realistic. There is no balance in this weighty matter with all sympathies going to our stoic heroine from the outset.
Adequately directed by Simon Curtis, the film carries its self-importance as its main pedigree. Adele is a feisty and strong-willed character, a predictable combination for the crowd- pleasing audience to root for and Dame Helen energizes the proceeding with her finely nuanced portrayal of a woman determined to fight injustice. But the film's lack of reality is the real crime in question. (Granted the tale spans decades, yet it should still adhere to the facts more closely...which it does not.) Mr. Reynolds is miscast in the crusader role, part nebbish and part idealistic hero as written, although the actor is never that convincing in the latter. Also in the cast are Daniel Bruhl as Hubertus Czernin, an ally to the cause, Tatiana Maslany as the younger Adele, Max Irons as her husband, and Henry Goodman as her father (in flashbacks), all contributing greatly to their underdeveloped characters. More support is given by Charles Dance, Elizabeth McGovern, Frances Fisher, Jonathan Pryce, and Katie Holmes as Pam, all talent wasted.
Woman in Gold is a riveting tale. The subject matter alone is compelling, but it remains pure fool's gold in its filmmaking efforts. See this docudrama for the glowing Ms. Mirren and the glorious artwork on display. They're priceless.
Visit my blog at: www.dearmoviegoer.com
ANY COMMENTS: Please contact me at: jadepietro@rcn.com
This film is mildly recommended.
In brief: No Midas touch...a serious-minded film that only scratches the surface of its important subject.
GRADE: B-
It seems standard practice nowadays that whenever a film is touted "based on true events", it is far from true. Upon researching this biography of Adele Bloch-Bauer and her family, that much is true. The gold standard has been slightly devalued in this noble effort that tells its "true" story in the most melodramatic of ways. Woman in Gold simplifies an important issue (the ethical matter of stolen art during the Nazi reign) and tries to personalize this historic event with stick figures as its characters and the wobbliest of story as its source. While it certainly is engrossing fare, it's a foolhardy result.
Set in Vienna, the film centers on Klimt's masterwork, Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer I. Once owned by the family and taken away from this Jewish clan and now the property of the Viennese government, the painting is now the treasure in question. A legal fight ensues. In one corner stands our worthy contender, "Saint" Maria Altman (Helen Mirren), who if we are to believe, wants this artwork back in her possession for strictly personal reasons as the painting depicts her dearly beloved grandmother. Taking her case is a young idealistic lawyer, Randol Schoenberg (Ryan Reynolds). In the other corner are those nasty governmental bureaucrats who want to keep the work of art for its people as a symbol of patriotism and national pride. And the financial worth of the piece sure doesn't hurt either.
The painting becomes the MacGuffin in this film that brings on the conflict and unites both parties in their battle over ownership. Alexi Kaye Campbell's misbegotten screenplay sees the issue in only black and white terms, with its stilted arguments and painted in the broadest of brush-strokes that never resemble anything remotely realistic. There is no balance in this weighty matter with all sympathies going to our stoic heroine from the outset.
Adequately directed by Simon Curtis, the film carries its self-importance as its main pedigree. Adele is a feisty and strong-willed character, a predictable combination for the crowd- pleasing audience to root for and Dame Helen energizes the proceeding with her finely nuanced portrayal of a woman determined to fight injustice. But the film's lack of reality is the real crime in question. (Granted the tale spans decades, yet it should still adhere to the facts more closely...which it does not.) Mr. Reynolds is miscast in the crusader role, part nebbish and part idealistic hero as written, although the actor is never that convincing in the latter. Also in the cast are Daniel Bruhl as Hubertus Czernin, an ally to the cause, Tatiana Maslany as the younger Adele, Max Irons as her husband, and Henry Goodman as her father (in flashbacks), all contributing greatly to their underdeveloped characters. More support is given by Charles Dance, Elizabeth McGovern, Frances Fisher, Jonathan Pryce, and Katie Holmes as Pam, all talent wasted.
Woman in Gold is a riveting tale. The subject matter alone is compelling, but it remains pure fool's gold in its filmmaking efforts. See this docudrama for the glowing Ms. Mirren and the glorious artwork on display. They're priceless.
Visit my blog at: www.dearmoviegoer.com
ANY COMMENTS: Please contact me at: jadepietro@rcn.com
Well, *I* liked it!
Qanqor7 April 2015
I just got home from seeing this film, and I very much enjoyed it. I've been reading some of the negative reviews and trying to understand what they're on about, but I just don't get it. I think it was a great film and I'm glad I saw it. OK, maybe following all the legal machinations gets a little dry at points, but I'm happy with this. It means that the film makers *respect* the story. This isn't one of those atrocities that claims to be based on history, but in fact plays so fast-and-loose with the facts that what you are getting is almost entirely fiction (yes, "The Imitation Game", I'm looking at *you*). While I don't know the details of the actual history in this case, from what I'm able to make out it seems like this film stays pretty true to the facts. I, for one, am glad they resisted the trend of schmaltzing the thing up.
an uninspired hack job with an industrially designed wrapping can appeal to the lowest common denominator
lasttimeisaw18 July 2015
The real story itself has every aspect to be an uplifting material for a big screen adaptation, the Republic of Austria v. Altmann case, the righteous Jewish octogenarian Maria Altmann (Mirren) against the acquisitive Austrian government machinery, for the right of Gustav Klimt's $135 million worth painting Woman in Gold, where Maria's aunt Adele (Traue) is the said woman, and as a refugee fled from her homeland under the persecution of Nazis half a century ago, Maria has every right to get what belongs to her family and at the same time, to make peace with the mixed feeling towards her native land.
But when $135 million is at stake, the story itself cannot dodge a cynic suspicion of how lofty the cause is, as Maria's lawyer Randy Schoenberg (Reynolds), a fellow Austrian descendant, the grandson of the well-known composer Arnold Schoenberg, ruefully admits in the middle section of the movie to his wife Pam (Holmes), he takes on the case for the sake of money, only later he becomes a more persistent driving force for the case when his personal connection with the cause being vicariously activated through this tough journey. But for Maria, screenwriter Alexi Kaye Campbell doesn't budge an inch on her integrity, although the aftermath is that the painting is geographically relocated from a museum in Vienna to another museum in New York City, while Maria earns a ginormous fortune by selling it, instead of keeping it as a personal treasure. No one should blame her since if that windfall befalls on any of us, we will most likely make the same decision under the circumstance, but a tangy odour of whitewash is frustrating and bothersome as a default blemish for the hagiography genre, not to mention a self-boosting chauvinism does't help either.
Overtly this film resembles another Dame star vehicle PHILOMENA (2013), both fare quite healthy in the box office, which means this sub-genre does have its potential ticket-buyers, but as a Weinstein project, I doubt WOMAN IN GOLD will have any weighty influence on the Oscar race like the Dench-Coogan pic. First of all, the odd pair of Mirren and Reynolds doesn't register a tangible bond with humour and warmth which actually is so adroitly exerted by Dench and Coogan. Dame Mirren shines in a dignified impression which has no fault to pick albeit the character itself is flatter than we imagined. Reynolds acts up in several emotion-emancipating scenes, but overall, too hammy to take it in. Also, PHILOMENA is a more personal rite-of-passage of finding forgiveness in the most atrocious activity can ever incur on oneself, while WOMEN IN GOLD is more or less bordering on an ostentatious smash which panders to the audience stateside.
One surprising discovery is Tatiana Maslany, who plays the young Maria, and the star of the cult show ORPHAN BLACK. She is the saving grace in my opinion and authentically a leading lady material, also Antje Traue is a stunner in this generically mass-catering flick, director Simon Curtis' follow-up of his overvalued Oscar-player MY WEEK WITH MARILYN (2011) is acceptably on a par with his predecessor, it can woo you instantly on the garish face value, but afterwards, it is just an uninspired hack job with an industrially designed wrapping can appeal to the lowest common denominator.
But when $135 million is at stake, the story itself cannot dodge a cynic suspicion of how lofty the cause is, as Maria's lawyer Randy Schoenberg (Reynolds), a fellow Austrian descendant, the grandson of the well-known composer Arnold Schoenberg, ruefully admits in the middle section of the movie to his wife Pam (Holmes), he takes on the case for the sake of money, only later he becomes a more persistent driving force for the case when his personal connection with the cause being vicariously activated through this tough journey. But for Maria, screenwriter Alexi Kaye Campbell doesn't budge an inch on her integrity, although the aftermath is that the painting is geographically relocated from a museum in Vienna to another museum in New York City, while Maria earns a ginormous fortune by selling it, instead of keeping it as a personal treasure. No one should blame her since if that windfall befalls on any of us, we will most likely make the same decision under the circumstance, but a tangy odour of whitewash is frustrating and bothersome as a default blemish for the hagiography genre, not to mention a self-boosting chauvinism does't help either.
Overtly this film resembles another Dame star vehicle PHILOMENA (2013), both fare quite healthy in the box office, which means this sub-genre does have its potential ticket-buyers, but as a Weinstein project, I doubt WOMAN IN GOLD will have any weighty influence on the Oscar race like the Dench-Coogan pic. First of all, the odd pair of Mirren and Reynolds doesn't register a tangible bond with humour and warmth which actually is so adroitly exerted by Dench and Coogan. Dame Mirren shines in a dignified impression which has no fault to pick albeit the character itself is flatter than we imagined. Reynolds acts up in several emotion-emancipating scenes, but overall, too hammy to take it in. Also, PHILOMENA is a more personal rite-of-passage of finding forgiveness in the most atrocious activity can ever incur on oneself, while WOMEN IN GOLD is more or less bordering on an ostentatious smash which panders to the audience stateside.
One surprising discovery is Tatiana Maslany, who plays the young Maria, and the star of the cult show ORPHAN BLACK. She is the saving grace in my opinion and authentically a leading lady material, also Antje Traue is a stunner in this generically mass-catering flick, director Simon Curtis' follow-up of his overvalued Oscar-player MY WEEK WITH MARILYN (2011) is acceptably on a par with his predecessor, it can woo you instantly on the garish face value, but afterwards, it is just an uninspired hack job with an industrially designed wrapping can appeal to the lowest common denominator.
Amazing - A punch to the stomach
palavitsinis5 January 2016
I think it's the best movie I have seen this year! Helen Mirren was simply breathtaking! A movie filled with history and amazing scenes from the Nazi era in Austria, a movie filled with the sense of justice and the longing for making things right. Ryan Reynolds was up to the task, although I was kind of fearful of whether or not he would manage to stand beside this great lady.
I enjoyed the flashbacks of the movie, and really sympathized with the drama of the Jews of Austria. An amazing movie coming in a time when the extreme parties around Europe are growing exponentially, to show us what really matters in the end and how the horrific actions of the Nazis have ruined the life of so many people.
In the end of the movie, you feel moved, you feel complete and you feel warm in the inside. I think that any movie that can offer these three things, is absolutely a "9" for me!
I enjoyed the flashbacks of the movie, and really sympathized with the drama of the Jews of Austria. An amazing movie coming in a time when the extreme parties around Europe are growing exponentially, to show us what really matters in the end and how the horrific actions of the Nazis have ruined the life of so many people.
In the end of the movie, you feel moved, you feel complete and you feel warm in the inside. I think that any movie that can offer these three things, is absolutely a "9" for me!
Nice story, decent film.
santiagocosme6 September 2015
I watched it, I payed attention to it, I wanted to know the outcome, but I never really got excited by this movie. Don't get me wrong, it is more than watchable, I just found it a little slow and unstimulating even though the protagonists were fighting for a painting worth over $100 million.
Maybe it was due to the annoying posh mannerisms of the lady, maybe the lawyer lacked real charisma, or it was the constant back and forth to the past filled with Nazi imagery (I am starting to get tired of Nazi/Jew related movies. There are just too many...) Or maybe, it's just me who just felt unconnected with too many elements from this movie.
In any case, I am aware that It's a nice story to know, so even though my review is on the negative side, I kind of feel happy I didn't waste my time on another offer.
Maybe it was due to the annoying posh mannerisms of the lady, maybe the lawyer lacked real charisma, or it was the constant back and forth to the past filled with Nazi imagery (I am starting to get tired of Nazi/Jew related movies. There are just too many...) Or maybe, it's just me who just felt unconnected with too many elements from this movie.
In any case, I am aware that It's a nice story to know, so even though my review is on the negative side, I kind of feel happy I didn't waste my time on another offer.
Dull and obvious
hou-36 August 2015
This is not a bad movie, it is just an awfully tedious and oh so predictable one. Helen Mirren does her formidable best to bring her character to life but regrettably she simply has no material to work with and the performance is formulaic. The intermingling of past and present is constantly irritating and while the spoken German is a brave attempt at authenticity - though Viennese it is not - it is also jarring. What really kills the movie however are two things, the absolutely clunky script and the mediocre direction. You know exactly what's coming and how it's going to arrive. Yawn, just more Nazi kitsch. Regrettably even Mirren can't rescue this plodding effort
A triumphant journey
Gordon-1112 August 2015
This film tells the story of a old woman who moved to USA to escaped Nazi rule in Austria when she was young. She finds documentary proof in her late sister's belongings that several priceless paintings are stolen from her family, and are now in the possession of a state museum.
"Woman in Gold" is a beautiful film because it's a journey of three people working hard for a common goal for slightly different reasons. I'm impressed by the lawyer's enthusiasm in taking up Maria's case. He shows much dedication and professionalism. Maria's goal to take back the paintings is to keep memories alive, which is very touching. The atmosphere of the film is kept quite serious but not sombre, which is not easy for a film about the persecution of Jews. Overall, I think this film portrays a triumphant journey, and is very touching.
"Woman in Gold" is a beautiful film because it's a journey of three people working hard for a common goal for slightly different reasons. I'm impressed by the lawyer's enthusiasm in taking up Maria's case. He shows much dedication and professionalism. Maria's goal to take back the paintings is to keep memories alive, which is very touching. The atmosphere of the film is kept quite serious but not sombre, which is not easy for a film about the persecution of Jews. Overall, I think this film portrays a triumphant journey, and is very touching.
Really slow going, at first, but quite captivating by it's conclusion!
Hellmant16 April 2015
'WOMAN IN GOLD': Three and a Half Stars (Out of Five)
British- American drama flick starring Helen Mirren and Ryan Reynolds and directed by Simon Curtis (who also directed another historical drama flick: 'MY WEEK WITH MARILYN'). It tells the true story of a Jewish refugee, in her 80s, who battled the Austrian government for nearly a decade; to regain control of famous artwork (especially a painting of her aunt, known as the Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer I), which was taken from her family by the Nazis before the war. Mirren plays the Jewish refugee and Reynolds plays the young American lawyer that helped her. The film costars Daniel Bruhl, Katie Holmes, Max Irons, Charles Dance, Jonathan Pryce and Elizabeth McGovern. It was written by Alexi Kaye Campbell and based on the life stories of Maria Altmann and E. Randol Schoenberg. I found the movie to be really slow going, at first, but quite captivating by it's conclusion.
Maria Altmann (Mirren) was a young Jewish woman (played by Tatiana Maslany, in her earlier years) who fled Austria, with her husband Fritz (Irons), as the Nazis were taking it over, right before World War II. Family art, including a painting of Maria's aunt, were seized by the Nazis, shortly later, and after the war the Austrian government took possession of them. The artwork became very valuable and iconic over the years (especially the Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer I). Maria decided, while in her 80s, to fight to get them back; due to their sentimental value, and the fact that they rightfully belonged to her. She enlisted the help of a young, and very inexperienced, lawyer named Randol Schoenberg (Reynolds).
The movie is powerfully acted (especially by it's two leads) and decently directed; but the story could have played out in a much more emotionally charged and engaging way. As it is, it takes a long time to really catch the viewer's interest. Once it gets to the meat of the story, though, it's very involving stuff. By the end of the film, I was quite satisfied with it; but I can't dismiss the first 30 to 45 minutes, of rather dull material I had to sit through. It's a decent film but it could have been even better.
Watch our movie review show 'MOVIE TALK' at: http://youtu.be/rxD9sln4Qkg
British- American drama flick starring Helen Mirren and Ryan Reynolds and directed by Simon Curtis (who also directed another historical drama flick: 'MY WEEK WITH MARILYN'). It tells the true story of a Jewish refugee, in her 80s, who battled the Austrian government for nearly a decade; to regain control of famous artwork (especially a painting of her aunt, known as the Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer I), which was taken from her family by the Nazis before the war. Mirren plays the Jewish refugee and Reynolds plays the young American lawyer that helped her. The film costars Daniel Bruhl, Katie Holmes, Max Irons, Charles Dance, Jonathan Pryce and Elizabeth McGovern. It was written by Alexi Kaye Campbell and based on the life stories of Maria Altmann and E. Randol Schoenberg. I found the movie to be really slow going, at first, but quite captivating by it's conclusion.
Maria Altmann (Mirren) was a young Jewish woman (played by Tatiana Maslany, in her earlier years) who fled Austria, with her husband Fritz (Irons), as the Nazis were taking it over, right before World War II. Family art, including a painting of Maria's aunt, were seized by the Nazis, shortly later, and after the war the Austrian government took possession of them. The artwork became very valuable and iconic over the years (especially the Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer I). Maria decided, while in her 80s, to fight to get them back; due to their sentimental value, and the fact that they rightfully belonged to her. She enlisted the help of a young, and very inexperienced, lawyer named Randol Schoenberg (Reynolds).
The movie is powerfully acted (especially by it's two leads) and decently directed; but the story could have played out in a much more emotionally charged and engaging way. As it is, it takes a long time to really catch the viewer's interest. Once it gets to the meat of the story, though, it's very involving stuff. By the end of the film, I was quite satisfied with it; but I can't dismiss the first 30 to 45 minutes, of rather dull material I had to sit through. It's a decent film but it could have been even better.
Watch our movie review show 'MOVIE TALK' at: http://youtu.be/rxD9sln4Qkg
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