Scanialara You won't be disappointed!

SnoReptilePlenty Memorable, crazy movie

Fleur Actress is magnificent and exudes a hypnotic screen presence in this affecting drama.

Francene Odetta It's simply great fun, a winsome film and an occasionally over-the-top luxury fantasy that never flags.

filmalamosa Portrayal of primitive modern artist Seraphine de Senlis.It is a good story. I have to say I don't like her paintings, while watching the movie went on line to look at them. Most of what I have read about primitive painters is that these fantastic "discoveries" turn out to be mostly duds--instilling false hopes in these poor artists.At one point in the movie someone viewing her art said the flowers looked like cut flesh. That isn't that far off--they are psychologically disturbing to look at. Van Gogh was psychotic but grounded in what beautiful art is---plus there are a zillion manifestations of psychosis. Well done movie on mental illness and early twentieth century life although I hardly think someone needs to be locked up for wandering around town doing strange things in a wedding dress.The actress puts in a first class performance.Good intelligent adult movie.

paul2001sw-1 Seraphine Loius was an impoverished, self-taught French painter who claimed to be inspired directly by God. This film of her life depicts her partly in the obvious way (as an idiot-savant), but also as a woman utterly determined, with a keen sense of her own worth and an acute sensitivity to her absence of value in the eyes of others. This characterisation gives the film its interest; but it's opening portion, depicting her early life without explanation, is almost unbearably slow and painful. The second half, in which there is more of a plot (thanks to her discovery by an art collector), is more interesting, although one shouldn't expect a happy end. While it's not a jolly film, it's a serious attempt to engage with an intriguing, awkward character; that it makes you want to see her pictures is a mark of its success.

Harry T. Yung Winning seven Cesar awards against tough competitors like "Il y a longtemps que je t'aime" says a lot. The biopic of French painter Seraphine de Senlis, born Seraphine Louis (Yolande Moreau), at the turn of the last century is among the best that the French cinema has offered.The story of the title protagonist is told in a way you wouldn't find in Hollywood – no fancy montages, no flashy flashbacks, no annoying voice-over, no pretentious twist and turns. Yet in the simple narrative that contains quite a large number of very short scenes, the story is mesmerizing. With the skillful camera as proxy, you are placed in the position of an intelligent observer of the somewhat enigmatic protagonist. Unlike many others, the movie makers of this film do not try to force on you pseudo profound analysis littered with Freudian complexes and childhood trauma.The film starts with an adult Seraphine and never turns back to talk about her earlier days except for a very brief mention, by herself, of an early romance that bore to significant consequences. Instead, it focuses aptly on the two most important things about her: her love of nature and her talent for painting. Attentive with character development and crisps with event narration, the filmmakers in turn paint a vivid portray of Seraphine: lowly housekeeper and laundress, plain appearance, childlike disposition, simple religious devotion, subdued but keen observer and a passion for conveying the beauty of nature on to canvas. She is "ahead of her time" in her style of painting that art critic Wilhelm Udhe (Ulrich Tukur) prefers to describe with the term "primitive modernism" rather than the more unflattering "naïve".The relationship between Seraphine and Wilhelm her mentor is tantalizingly subtle. There is little about Seraphine that is sensually attractive and what's more. Wilhelm is homosexual. And yet, there is something between them that is akin to Platonic love. Quite revealing is Wilhelm's characterization of himself as "not collect to be able to sell, but rather to seller to be able to collect". A true lover and connoisseur of art, he would naturally love Seraphine for her talent and work. On her part, she is not incapable of romantic tendencies as mentioned above, but just imprisoned by her lowly status and unattractive appearance. Wilhelm is someone who can truly see how beautiful she is and her infatuation for him is only natural, as in her jealousy of a woman who later turns out to be his sister.The seven Cesars include best film, cinematography and Moreau's what must be a very close (but very deserved) win over Kristin Scott Thomas who is nothing short of brilliant in "Il y a longtemps que je t'aime".

Howard Schumann A frumpy cleaning woman well into middle age is discovered by an art critic to be a painter with talent comparable to Vincent Van Gogh. Her story is told in the riveting Seraphine, directed by Martin Provost and winner of seven Césars, the French version of the Oscars, including a best actress award for Yolande Moreau. With a screenplay by Martin Provost and Marc Abdelnour, the film is set in the village of Senlis outside of Paris where Séraphine Louis (Yolande Moreau) lives alone and must take odd jobs just to pay for her painting supplies. Séraphine is a visionary, a devout Catholic who believes she is guided by a guardian angel and her exotic paintings of flowers and plants describe her feelings of closeness to spirit.Treated with disdain by her condescending employer, her life takes on new meaning when a tenant, German art critic Wilhelm Uhde (Ulrich Tukur) hires Séraphine to clean for him and accidentally discovers one of her paintings that her boss had tossed aside. A champion of modern "primitvist" artists who is credited with early recognition of Picasso and Rousseau, Uhde is portrayed by Tukur as a quiet, unassuming man who lives with his sister and a gay lover. He recognizes Séraphine's talent but never shows much enthusiasm, preferring to keep their relationship on a very business-like basis.Impressed by Seraphine's passionate art, Uhde offers to become her patron but, feeling estranged in France, must soon leave the country to return to Germany as the First World War begins. Although Séraphine continues to paint, she has no connection with Uhde until the latter part of the 1920s when he provides her with the means to quit her job and paint full time. Unfortunately, her grip on reality falters and she is soon hospitalized after indulging in spending sprees on a wedding dress and purchase of a large mansion. One of the saddest scenes in the film is that of Séraphine dressed in a full wedding gown, going door to door giving her away her possessions.Provost in Séraphine captures the artist's mystical nature and her close bond with nature that shows up in her works, which are still exhibited in many of the world's museums. She is shown hugging trees, climbing them, and standing as a tiny speck beneath a towering shade tree. One scene shows her standing nude in water up to her chest in a nearby river. Provost takes a minimalist approach and the film does not contain much dialogue. The story is told by the silences and facial expressions and the music by Michael Galasso adds richness to the experience. Fully capturing the eternal mystery of the creative process, Séraphine itself is a work of art.