This German film in the New Waves Non-Fiction section is directed by Oliver Hirschbiegel - one of the most immersive looks at the process of artistic creation in living memory. Simultaneously fascinating and playful and, at times, extravagant, even irritating, the new feature film by the director of Downfall bypasses whatever rules there might be for separating fiction and documentary.
Here are four reasons why you should rush to the cinema to enjoy The Painter:
1. For what it suggests
The Painter allows us to peer through the keyhole in the door of the studio of Albert Oehlen, one of the most important contemporary painters, to witness the process behind the creation of one of his masterpieces. German actor Ben Becker plays this excessive artist, as he faces the terror of the blank canvas, rages, does bizarre dance steps, struts, laughs with Cézanne, hums, wears yellow and a sock as a glove, and weeps in despair at the sudden drain of inspiration. Ending up sitting on the stairs, reciting a line-up of geniuses: "Niki de Saint Phalle, Cézanne, Van Gogh, Rembrandt, Johan Sebastian Bach, Michael Jackson, Falco, Motörhead, Albert Oehlen. Me".
2. For what is behind
From the process of creating a painting, to the process of creating a film, specifically this one. It would be a delight to make a ‘behind the scenes’ about the filming of The Painter. In Oliver Hirschbiegel's mischievous cinematic game, an actor plays an artist who creates. On the screen, we see an apparent fiction shot as a documentary, and Ben Becker with the brushes and paint stains. A few metres away, in a corner perhaps, hidden from our view behind two cameras, the real Albert Oehlen was creating the work that Becker was reproducing in parallel in an improvised performance. The finished painting on screen is an original "Oehlen" that the artist himself never came close to. The painting he made, in the shot we don't see, was destroyed after the final take.
Though originally planned to be a performative statement, the team of Oliver Hirschbiegel, Ben Becker and Albert Oehlen (all three are listed as authors in the film's credits) ended up developing an unusual study of what authenticity is in the art world, crossing formal boundaries and adding an amusing deconstruction of the archetype of this tormented, male artist.
3. For the actor and the artist
Ben Becker's work is a tour de force, delivering one of those performances that shatters expectations and demonstrates infinite talent. An old friend of Hirschbiegel, he is a well-known actor on the German stage and television, and has also made some notable film appearances, such as The Shadow of the Past (Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck, 2018), which was presented in Seville. The overwhelming construction of his character in The Painter is a lesson in risk-taking, a fascinating leap into the void.
And his character? Lovers of contemporary painting and the abstract will know Albert Oehlen (Krefeld, 1954), closely linked to the Cologne art scene and the Neue Wilde movement. His art can be defined as neo-expressionist, he is described as a radical. A free soul with a free soul stating about the interpretation of his work: "Let everyone think what they want. It bores me to talk about meanings. I don't look for understanding or complicity with the public. Everyone is free with their own sensations".
4. Because of its director
When Oliver Hirschbiegel had the opportunity to direct the first German film on the figure of Adolf Hitler, his name was already familiar thanks to the success of Das Experiment (2001), which had already won him awards at festivals such as Fantasporto and Montreal. But Downfall (2004) brought him to the forefront of European cinema. The film was a smash hit (who hasn't seen a dozen memes with Bruno Ganz's Hitler banging on a table filled with plans of countries to occupy?), making the pages of newspapers, stirring controversy in Germany and being nominated for an Oscar. Hirschbiegel's career includes Hollywood sci-fi (Invasion, with Nicole Kidman and Daniel Craig), a look at the Irish conflict (Five Minutes of Heaven, with Liam Neeson), a biopic of Lady Di (Diana, with Naomi Watts) and a return to the Nazi theme (13 Minutes). After a period shooting episodes of series such as Billions and Criminal: he has returned to cinema again with a free and radical proposition such as The Painter.
