SummarySeraphine vividly recounts the tragic story of French naïve painter Séraphine Louis aka Séraphine de Senlis (1864-1942), a humble servant who becomes a gifted self-taught painter. Discovered by prominent critic and collector William Uhde, she came to prominence between the wars grouped with other naïve painters like Henri Rousseau only to descend... Read More
Directed By:Martin Provost
Written By:Marc Abdelnour, Martin Provost
Séraphine
Metascore
Universal Acclaim
84
User score
Universal Acclaim
8.5
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Top Cast
Metascore
Universal Acclaim
100% Positive
22 Reviews
22 Reviews
0% Mixed
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
100
It "explains" nothing but feels everything. It reminds me of two other films: Bresson's "Mouchette," about a poor girl victimized by a village, and Karen Gehre's "Begging Naked," shown at Ebertfest this year, about a woman whose art is prized even as she lives in Central Park.
91
Moreau is bewitching -- she simply breathes her role, without a hint of vanity.
88
With exquisitely simple images and minimal dialogue, Seraphine is both haunting and humane.
80
The line between madness and genius is thin. Not to mention more than amply explored in any number of films about tortured artists. But to look at the almost religious ecstasy on Moreau's face is to feel the artist's passion and be inspired by it.
80
The mystery of Séraphine de Senlis -- who died in a mental hospital in 1942 and whose work survives in some of the world’s leading museums -- is left intact at the end of Séraphine. Rather than trying to explain Séraphine, the film accepts her.
75
It's a movie about a scrubwoman who paints - so don't expect lots of sex scenes or car chases. Just expect a great performance by Moreau, who will convince you that she painted every one of those paintings - and lived them all before she painted them.
67
Séraphine is far more powerful when it lingers on Louis at work.
User score
Universal Acclaim
100% Positive
8 Ratings
8 Ratings
0% Mixed
0 Ratings
0 Ratings
0% Negative
0 Ratings
0 Ratings
Dec 26, 2010
8
Not only was I pleased to learn more about an artist whose work I have seen and admired, but this film made a careful effort to be convincing. I believed in the portrait it made of her. The actress deserved an award. Also the cinematography and the script and the casting were all exemplary. It was hard to finish because I read in Wikipedia about her, but the film managed to show every part of her life with grace .
Production Company:
- TS Productions
- France 3 Cinéma
- Climax Films
- Radio Télévision Belge Francophone (RTBF)
- Centre national du cinéma et de l'image animée (CNC)
- La Région Île-de-France
- Canal+
- CinéCinéma
- TV5MONDE
- Centre du Cinéma et de l'Audiovisuel et des Télédistributeurs Wallons
- Tax Shelter du Gouvernement Fédéral Belge
- Tax Shelter ING Invest de Tax Shelter Productions
- La Banque postale Image
- Sociétés de Financement Pour le Cinéma et l'audiov
- Soficinéma 3
- Société des Producteurs de Cinéma et de Télévision (Procirep)
- Angoa-Agicoa
- MEDIA Programme of the European Union
Release Date:Jun 5, 2009
Duration:2 h 5 m
Awards
César Awards, France
• 7 Wins & 9 Nominations
Newport Beach Film Festival
• 5 Wins & 5 Nominations
Lumiere Awards, France
• 1 Win & 4 Nominations
