Séraphine

I wasn't able to go watch this film during last year's French Film Festival in Melbourne.
Along with 'Renoir' which I saw, these two were on my list.
And finally, I was able to get hold of this one.

What a wonderful film it was!

I had never heard of this artist, and after googling her, I know a bit of her now.

The film traces her latter life fairly accurately.
Her depressingly poor life as a house cleaner, chance encounter with art critic Wilhelm Uhde, financial success and a recognition of her talent by public, war and her downfall to mental insanity.

What makes this film so moving is the way it was shot.
Its minimalistic and very atmospheric style works wonder here.
It's really refreshing to see film like this these days where it's full of deafening noise.

The scenery is just beautiful to look at, and main casts all deliver superb performance.

At the end, her death was really a tragedy.
She had an obsessive urge to paint and never gave up, no matter how desolute her situation was.
Uhde's support for her even after her death was very touching.

I wonder how many Séraphine exist in this world now or have existed, who have an enormous artistic talent, but never see the light of day.

At least, she was discovered and achieved her place in the history of art.
That's some sort of redemption, I guess.

"Be ardent in your work and you will find God in your cooking pots."