Greetings,
As I've said numerous times, I am a big fan of the arts, but not such a big fan of kids. So...here's a review of a documentary about a kid who maybe does art. I could go either way on this one, my friends. Be prepared.
My Kid Could Paint That is a 2007 documentary about a four-year-old girl named Marla Olmstead who starts to get a ton of attention for how well she can paint abstract works of art. Question mark. I say "question mark", because slowly but surely this film turns from being about how amazingly gifted this child is as an artist to being about whether or not this child IS actually amazingly gifted as an artist.
At the start, we follow Marla and her family, including her dad, Mark, her mom, Laura, and her little brother, Zane, as she begins to get noticed by various art collectors and media in general. We see how all of this affects the family, how the parents react in different ways to the demand on their daughter, and how they make decisions concerning her. At first glance, it seems to be an in depth look at an ordinary family that is going through an extraordinary experience.
Things begin to make a change after Marla is featured in a 60 Minutes II piece wherein her abilities are called into question. They even have a child psychologist, who studies the arts in gifted children, chime in on what she can do. Ultimately, after viewing various videos of Marla actually painting, she concludes that the girl isn't doing anything that any other child wouldn't do. Basically, she's pushing paint around on a canvas. But it's not so much about that process, rather than the end result.
First of all, whilst her paintings are obviously abstract, you can see that there is something of a structure to a lot of them, if that makes any sense. Like if you look hard enough, you can see things. I don't think all abstract art does this. Soon people begin to take notice that the paintings she does when she's on camera appear to be different from those she has done off camera. By that, they mean the ones we don't see being created are better. This starts speculation that, perhaps, she isn't doing these paintings all on her own. Her family and their motives begin to raise suspicions, especially when it comes to her father, who was, himself, an amateur painter. It's as though everyone needs a gimmick and the idea of a four-year-old doing these paintings is the one they chose. And the film really becomes a "Did she or didn't she?" plot.
In the end, the film makers pretty much leave the audience to look over the evidence, if you will, and decide for themselves what is real and what isn't, which isn't necessarily a bad thing. There was some controversy, however, on how it seemed that the director, who initially was quite friendly with and supportive of the family, almost started to turn on them, hoping for a big "A-ha!" twist if he could discover that they were lying. I'm not sure if I really got that. At least, not as much as other people. To me, he appeared to just be getting as suspicious as everyone, and rightfully so. And after watching some of the interviews and videos, I certainly began to get suspicious of these parents, particularly, again, of the father. He seemed a little off to me, and the mother just looked so uncomfortable with the whole situation. Now, I don't want to judge them or make assumptions, since maybe this was just how they ended up being portrayed in the film, but it makes sense to wonder.
One of the interesting aspects of this documentary was that they also gave some great commentary on the art buying public. It kind of shows that rich people buy, literally, anything if they think it will give them status. I mean, I know a lot of us can complain about rich people buying things that they don't need, but this reminds us that they sometimes buy things they might not even want. Now I won't turn this into a condemnation on the 1% and their spending habits. Look, if you have money, spend it on whatever you like. I'm not going to judge you. We are all frivolous from time to time, no matter how much money we have, and we buy things we don't need. However, buying things you don't want, just because it's going to make you look good or high class, is something that maybe no one should really do. At least, not a lot. Don't get me wrong. When I make my first gazillion, I might go out there and get myself a Van Gogh or a Monet or a McCartney (yeah, that's right!), but that's because I really like them, not because I'm supposed to have them. It's the same reason I'm going to buy myself a Chanel bag. Also, because I deserve one. EVERY WOMAN deserves a Chanel bag. You're welcome, ladies. But I'm getting off topic here.
In conclusion, I'm going to say that this is a really good documentary. It will definitely keep your interest and make you think, which is something I love in film. And if you're wondering what is my opinion on whether or not little Marla did these paintings all on her own, I can say without any doubt or question...I don't know. Yeah. Again, I think that's another great thing about this movie. It can make you go back and forth in your head about what you think is for real and what isn't. If I have to state what I most think may have happened here, I think it's possible that Marla did paint on those canvasses, like any other kid would do, and then maybe someone else came along and added a little something to them. MAYBE. I'm not saying that this is what happened; I'm merely saying that it is a possibility. However, do I hope that this is what went on? Absolutely not! I don't want this to be a case of shady parents getting caught using and exploiting their child. I want it to be a case of parents who were blessed with an extremely gifted child who can create amazing artwork, and they just want the world to see. That is my piece. But with all the subjectivity in the art world, what with abstract art and even Dadaism, who can ever say what's good or not, or what's legit or not. I suppose it all comes down to what a person likes to look at, and I like to look at this documentary. So I say give My Kid Could Paint That a glance, too. It's worth your time.
Love and full moons,
Becky the Writer
