The Painting (2013)

Wonderful character development!

The film makes a home in your brain and the only cure is to see it again.

This is a coming of age storyline that you've seen in one form or another for decades. It takes a truly unique voice to make yet another one worth watching.

It's a good bad... and worth a popcorn matinée. While it's easy to lament what could have been...

a beautiful film. not complex script. not extraordinary story. but the memory of colors, the lovely simplicity, the freshness warm flavor of childhood, the emotions who are mixture of old images, adventure spirit, religious lesson and philosophical crumbs is like a kind of music. the result - an useful meeting. seductive, refreshing, delicate, a not ordinary animation who represents more than entertainment, a window to a splendid universe. the sense of well known world, the game of colors, the animation as a kind of delicate invitation to self discover are virtues of a film with not high ambitions but for this reason admirable way to remember the basic fundamental things.

It's a been a while since a film has filled me with wonder. The idea and visual effects created a world that makes you wish you could crawl through your TV. Every aspect of this movie soars: dialogue, character, story, visual, tone, etc. By comparison, the American animated movies seem too safe and predictable.The visual team did an excellent job of creating a painted world in terms of how it looked and functioned. Some very clever thinking went into deciding what's possible within a canvas. The plot was straight forward, the painted characters fear they have been abandoned, but has enough substance for serious introspection.The Painting is an excellent film for children and adults. It tackles some more serious themes than most American cartoons: racism, death, and philosophical questions about our purpose and creation. I'll be looking forward to seeing more films by the highly imaginative director Jean- Francois Laguionie.

--WARNING: There are some spoilers ahead for those who haven't seen the film, so just a heads up. In order to accurately review this film, it may be necessary to talk about some key moments.--As most films of it's nature go, The Painting's immortality will lie in it's infinite lore, but most likely remain obscure to the masses for quite some time. Movies like this one never fade away forever, and someday it's genuine charm will be rediscovered and heralded as a masterpiece, but for now, it is a modest piece about social classes and the desire to be accepted into the world you are a part of.In the Painting, three types of individuals exist. The Toupins, who are completed works, the Pafinis, which have spots here and there that remain unfinished, and Reufs, which remain in sketch form and barely brushed out beyond mere outlines. The film is a portrayal of social standards and class warfare in it's most predictable and overdone manner, but most interesting is it's abandonment of it's confined world and use of other paintings to provide a bigger canvas, and help it's vision of a larger universe to convey it's message of relativity.It's preachy no doubt, but these frequent forays into other paintings not only give the film a much needed whimsical quality, but also a break from the heavy handed nature of it's narrative. There is no denying how beautiful of a film it is, and it goes without saying I'm sure, but thankfully the substance behind all the events taking place gives enough to chew on and the films premise, although short, is rewarding, albeit predictable by the end.If anything, the character's could've been a little deeper, but this seems nit-picky for such an enjoyable film. Recommended for anyone who appreciates artistic ingenuity in film and a quality animated adventure.

The Painting is about a painting in a painter's home. The painting is incomplete in several ways. The painting has a château, a flowering garden, and a dangerous forest, plus a multitude of characters.The characters are divided into (Toupins, Pafinis, Reufs) or (Alldunns, Halfies, Sketchies) in English. In the conceit of the film, the Toupins (completed, fully painted characters) decide they should rule the proceedings, treating the Pafinis (part finished) badly, and enslaving the Reufs (rough sketches).The protagonist is Lola a Halfie. Her Halfie friend Claire has fallen in love with a completed character, Ramo. Ramo tries to speak against the bad behaviour of the Alldunns in the château, but is shouted down. Claire is imprisoned. Lola, Ramo, and a Sketchie named Quill escape the painted through a perimeter weakness in the forest.Once outside, the painting style shifts to a mixed one. Our heroes keep their form and colours, but the outside is rendered in strongly realistic terms. This is executed quite well.The trio interact with characters in the painter's other paintings. Eventually they find that they can paint themselves. They speak with the painter's self-portrait, and gather up paint and brushes to take back the the painting of origin.Their return increases the chaos for a while, but levels out the inequalities.The ending where Lola again departs the painting and speaks with the painter is just delightful. There is another shift of mixing styles which is also well done.------Scores------Art/Animation: 10/10 Breath-taking.Sound: 10/10 No problems.Screenplay: 10/10 Loved the imaginative story with interesting infrastructure, and beautiful ending.