Inspired by remarkable true events, new dramedy The Stolen Painting follows a self-assured auctioneer whose professional and personal integrity is challenged by the discovery of a long-lost masterpiece.
Paris, present day. Brash 40-something André Masson (Alex Lutz), a hotshot modern art appraiser at prestigious high-end auction house Scottie’s, receives word that a painting by Egon Schiele may have been found in a young factory worker’s home in Mulhouse.
Though highly sceptical, André travels to view the canvas with his ex-partner and fellow expert valuer, Bettina (Léa Drucker) and intern Aurore (Louise Chevillotte), only to be convinced of its authenticity. The painting’s trajectory from having been stolen and presumed destroyed by the Germans during WWII to its current location, will see the painting’s new owner, Martin (Arcadi Radeff), thrust into this new bewildering world of art and greed. For both André and Martin, their responses prove unexpected.
Lutz navigates André’s likeability scale from low to high and back again with ease, and some of the sub story lines aren’t resolved. Seeing Paris on screen however is always life affirming. The standout is Radeff however, capturing Martin’s disillusionment and sincerity, to become the film’s unlikely antihero.
The Stolen Painting is screening nationally now at Palace Cinemas. Check your local guides for screening times.
About The Stolen Painting
Rating: M
Length: 91mins
Language: French with English subtitles
Directed by Pascal Bonitzer
Stars Alex Lutz, Léa Drucker, Nora Hamzawi, Louise Chevillotte, Alain Chamfort, Olivier Rabourdin, Arcadi Radeff
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