DVD Review: My Kid Could Paint That

Director: Amir Bar-Lev
Cast: Amir Bar-Lev, Amir Bar-Lev, Anthony Brunelli, Elizabeth Cohen, Michael Kimmelman, Laura Olmstead, Mark Olmstead, Marla Olmstead, Zane Olmstead
Rating: PG-13
Studio: Sony Pictures
Release Date: March 4, 2008

Ever since I heard about the release of the documentary film, My Kid Could Paint That, I wanted to be the one to review this film. I love documentaries, especially ones that are interesting stories about messed up situations. I guess you could call the possibility of Marla Olmstead being a fraud, interesting. After all, her fraud, if committed, was done at the age of four. Regardless of whether Marla painted the work for herself or not, the controversy surrounding the story and the emotions it stirs up within each person who watches this film, is an amazing connection Bar-Lev was able to give all of us.

Watching this film was like a rollercoaster ride. I felt conflicted from the moment the parents were introduced. I believed their story that things started out as innocently as they did, but once things began to spiral out of control, I found the father, Mark, to be the guilty one, that is, if there was any guilt to be had. If there was was any type of deception, it might have started out small and turned into such a gigantic lie that nothing could fix the irreparable damage caused by parents who thought they had their child’s best interest at heart…well at least, it is clear, by one of them.

Release Information:
My Kid Could Paint That debuted at the Sundance Film Festival. It ran the film festival circuit appearing at the Toronto Film Festival, London Film Festival, Warsaw International FilmFest, and the Edmonton International Film Festival amongst others. On October 5, 2007, the film enjoyed a limited release in theaters. Now, since Sony Classics bought the rights, it has come to DVD.

On March 4, 2008, My Kid Could Paint That was released by Sony pictures. I haven’t seen this in local retail stores, such as Wal-Mart and the like, but they could be there, since I don’t get out much. You’ll be able to find My Kid Could Paint That online, for sure though. It’s available at places like DVD Empire and Amazon, where it can be purchased for $19.99 USD.

The My Kid Could Paint That Plot
My Kid Could Paint That started out more as an expression of what is art, who makes art, and why the world is so enthralled with the art of one little girl, Marla Olmstead. Amir Bar-Lev was fascinated when he first heard about Marla. At two, she was painting, by sitting on an art canvas, in a diaper. By the age of 4, she had amassed over $300,000 in sales, all of which her parents claim went into a trust, to pay for college and other adult expenses.

Marla’s family doesn’t seem rich. They live in a cozy, common man’s house. Dad, Mark, is a Frito Lay manager who toils in the arts, briefly. He’s no art expert and his realistic drawings/paintings aren’t exceptionally good. Mom, Laura, is a dental assistant. She seems the most genuine of the Olmsteads, next to the kids of course. My first impression of Marla was that she was shy, quiet, and somewhat reclusive. This was especially true when it came to her artwork. She didn’t like talking about it and hated showing people how she worked.

You could barely blame her. She’s a darling child, but imagine asking an adult to express what their painting means, especially abstract art. Now tell a four year old to do it. It’s pretty unlikely that any four year old would have an answer other than, it’s fun or I did it. Nevertheless, it’s odd we never hear Marla say one word about anyone helping her paint, at least until the end. Bar-Lev was someone she came to trust. Still, her art work was quite special to her.

I’ve found that there are two kinds of Marla paintings. There are the ones that Marla does with swirls, twirls, shapes and figures. Then there are the ones where she paints specific images into the paintings. These two styles look different. The painted images, tend to look slightly more childish, but that is to be expected. Also, we, as the audience, must keep in mind that no two paintings look the same. For a four year old, who is painting by her expressions and instincts, I could see where variation might occur. Bar-Lev, was on the side of the Olmsteads. He wanted to make a documentary about art, but halfway through this documentary, things begin to change.

As the media begins to question whether Marla is the sole artist behind her paintings, they bring in a slew of experts who claim Marla couldn’t possibly be the artist. Granted, there has never been a child they know of who has made such magnificent paintings, but after watching her paint, they are certain that she simply isn’t the artist, based on realistic child painters they have seen. I’m not sure I buy this logic, but I’m also not sure that Marla is the only painter. I want to believe she is, but unless I were to be in the room with Marla, as she was painting, I wouldn’t know anything for sure.

While the parents normally just let Marla paint whenever she wanted, there were cameras installed, hidden, and Bar-Lev did film Marla painting. All of the filmed works turned out poorly. One question that was never raised deals with the fact that maybe Marla isn’t like a circus animal. Perhaps, like most artistic minds she cannot paint on command. So that question then becomes, did she somehow feel rushed or threatened by the camera? Did she somehow feel threatened by the only instance where we’ve seen her father urging her to paint (the hidden camera)?

Her parents had better success with Marla when they made home video recordings of her painting something named Ocean. While some saw it as substandard compared to other works, I felt the more realistic elements (drawn objects) are what made it look different. Since then, Marla has completed other paintings in both styles, with some looking one way and the others looking like the Ocean painting turned out. It’s hard to have conclusive evidence about whether one painting is Marla’s and one isn’t.

More questions are raised by Bar-Lev. Are her parents lying? After seeing her mother’s breakdown, I believe she isn’t. Her father, on the other hand, has shifty eyes. He looks guilty. If he had nothing to hide, he wouldn’t be back peddling whenever he’s questioned about helping Marla. This all comes down to whether coaching is considered help or whether he actually made the paintings for Marla.

My opinion is if he’s lying he coached her. Marla can mix colors well. She enjoys painting though and all footage proves that. She also doesn’t say anything other then they are her paintings. She is honest in other areas saying her little brother, Zane, made a green painting of his own, but she didn’t help with that and only her paintings get to go in the galleries.

Marla does have one moment in front of the camera. It can either be a moment of truth, to some, or a moment of frustration with Marla not liking the camera taping her. No artist can create on command. Try asking a writer to go write their novel, when they aren’t ready to write. The creative process comes when the artist is ready for it, but no sooner. A frustrated Marla, doesn’t want to paint. It’s pretty clear she’s probably heard something about people saying she hasn’t done her own work. So, she tries to get her father to paint for her. It’s his turn. The father is embarrassed. He doesn’t know what to say. All he can say is something to the effect of, tell a four year old something and she’ll repeat it.

Laura Olmstead seems regretful. She feels she has done this to her children. She makes it clear if she did it all over again, she’d do it differently. As Bar-Lev finally admits the truth (that he doesn’t know if Marla is the painter), the movie’s climax is so stifling. It’s amazing to watch. Seriously, you want to believe the Olmsteads. They don’t seem like bad people. They just seem misguided. By the same token, how can you believe them?

By the end of the film, the feelings you feel are as conflicted as Bar-Levs. I can’t go as far as Roger Ebert, who claims they were not Marla’s paintings. I can say I don’t feel she did all of them, on her own. At least, not when she was four. I do think her father helped by coaching her, and telling her, what to do. Of course, I could see that maybe she did do them. I don’t know. This documentary really got to me.

Marla is approaching the age of eight (or she already is) now. She is still painting. She isn’t as accessible to the press. She’s more willing to paint on camera. She’s more likely to be doing all the painting on her own. Is her work art? It’s certainly interesting. However, if she enjoys it and those who purchase her paintings enjoy them, then that is what matters.

In the end, it is Marla who suffers. If she is doing these paintings or not, it will surely be the perfect story for a tell-all book once Marla reaches adulthood. Until then, whether she is responsible is anyone’s guess.

Storyline/Plot:
Replayability:
Directing:

Audio/Visual:
For a documentary film, My Kid Could Paint That looks surprisingly vibrant. The film was done with a high definition camera. It has been enhanced anamorphically and is presented at a widescreen, 1.78:1 aspect ratio. The film is relatively solid though the occasional, gritty documentary, home video picture is presented. Though this is intentional, this means the picture gets soft occasionally. Otherwise, it looks excellent. Very few complaints here.

The English, Dolby Digital, 5.1 surround sound mix is nice. Everything comes through crisply. I didn’t have to toggle with my volume. I could hear everything said clearly and easily. It wasn’t used for any type of sound effects, though it did enhance the occasional music that helped set the tone for the movie.

Visual:
Audio:

Bonus Features:
There are quite a few extras that actually are high quality extras. As soon as you finish watching the movie, I highly recommend watching the featurette, “Back to Binghamton”. This has Bar-Lev going back to Binghamton, NY where the Olmsteads live. This contains footage not shown in the movie, including a look at the town, opinions of the townspeople on Marla’s artwork, a look at another gallery owner in town and her opinion of Marla, and Bar-Lev’s narration as he shows the town the movie prior to its release. It also shows clips from Bar-Lev, with Cohen and Brunelli at Sundance.

From there, you should check out the audio commentary for the film. The disappointing part of the commentary is the lack of Bar-Lev. The commentary is by Brunelli, who isn’t that cool, and John Walter, the film editor, who talks about the actual making of the film. This is the most disappointing of the extras merely because Bar-Lev would have made a great addition to the commentary, especially since this was his film. Still, it’s worth a listen.

There is another feature called “Michael Kimmelman on Art”. Kimmelman is an art critic and more question into what is art is a valuable addition to a DVD that constantly brings this into question. Finally, the DVD includes multiple trailers for other Sony Pictures releases though the trailer for My Kid Could Paint That isn’t included.

Bonus Features:

Bottom Line:
My Kid Could Paint That is one of those films you have to see to believe and even then, you aren’t exactly sure what to believe. You instinctively like Laura Olmstead and local reporter, Elizabeth Cohen, but constantly question the characters of Mark Olmstead and gallery owner, Anthony Brunelli. Brunelli is especially unlikeable. He is a realistic painter who appears jealous of abstract artists. This leads to many petty and bitter expressions on camera, that make it clear he’s only in it for the money, since Marla’s so profitable.

In the end, it is Marla who needs to be thought of and who suffers the most. With those she trusts turning their back on her (Bar-Lev included) and her misguided parents thrusting her into a spotlight she isn’t comfortable in, it’s a wonder she still enjoys painting at all. Your heart will go out to her and hope that she isn’t the unwilling participant in an intricate scam, you simply don’t want to believe. My Kid Could Paint That is a must see documentary.

Overall Rating:

Technorati Tags: DVD Review, My Kid Could Paint That, Artist, New York, Art Gallery, child prodigy, Marla Olmstead, Mark Olmstead, Laura, Zane

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Written by Dominick - Visit Website
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Dominick Evans is in his late 20's. He spends his days working as a full time writer/editor and a part time musician/composer. His passions in life include music, directing films, watching movies, reading books, watching sports, wheelchair football, politics and spending time with his family (fiancée Ashtyn, son Robert, and shih-tzu Oliver). Other interests include being an advocate for the disability and GLBT communities.