Woman in Gold (2015)
I love films with history in them. And this film has a lot of it!
‘Woman in Gold’ starring Helen Mirren and Ryan Reynolds among others, is the real life story of Maria Altman and Randol Schoenberg. Maria escaped with her husband in the 1920s from Nazi occupied Austria to the United States. Her family’s property and personal items were seized from them. Among these was a portrait of her very beautiful aunt painted by renowned artist Gustav Klimt. The portrait is a stunning masterpiece hanging in the Belvedere gallery in Vienna, Austria. Maria enlists the help of Randol Schoenberg, a young lawyer whose grandparents also fled from Austria, to get back this painting and others.
The film relays between the past and the present. We see how Maria and her family once lived, how the Nazis came and snatched everything away and how she fled to America. You see the injustices meted out to the Jews. Their property was taken away, they were torn from their homes, and they were dehumanized and stripped of their dignity. Those scenes really broke my heart. The Jews were ostracized and treated like vermin by the Nazis with the full support of the public. The sadness and fear that they feel is conveyed quite well. Now because the events of the past and the grief they caused have been shown, you really sympathize with Maria’s cause.
In the present an old Maria and Randol are doing everything they possibly can to get back the painting from the Austrian government, who are extremely reluctant to let it go. They believe that it belongs to them and is something that contributes to the pride of their country. Maria is going through a very hard time. She is desperate to get back the painting, which is a reminder of her family, their glory and her happy past. It is all both painful and nostalgic to her. Randol in the process of aiding Maria in acquiring the painting finds a deep connection with his heritage and roots. He becomes a lot more invested in the whole affair than he initially thought he would.
The film is the story of two people fighting to right the wrongs committed towards their people. It is the story of a lost young man discovering his roots and finding purpose in his life. It is the story of a woman desperate to connect with a sliver of her happy past and get justice in some small way for what happened to her family. They say that the art requisition program started by the Austrian government was partly to improve its image internationally. They were and still are reluctant to let go of so many pieces of illegally acquired art which they feel contributed to the pride of Austria. So there were many hurdles that the people had to go through to get back their stolen art. The fact that despite all that Randy and Maria managed to get back her aunt’s magnificent portrait, which was more special than most other pieces is something amazing!
Helen Mirren plays Maria, and is pitch perfect. She goes from emotional to sad to fussy aunt, seamlessly. Ryan Reynolds who plays Randy is very sincere in his part. In the parts where he got emotional, frustrated or teary eyed, I wanted to reach into the screen and give him a hug! Tatiana Maslany who plays young Maria is quite remarkable and looks a whole lot like Helen Mirren in this film.
The camera work is amazing with sweeping shots of the landscapes. The fancy roads, buildings and high end societies of LA, and the charming streets and buildings of Vienna have been captured so very well. The colors are all toned down which conveys the reality and solemnness that this film is rooted in.
It’s a lovely film that really makes you feel something. You really connect with Maria. It is a peek into the life of someone from another part of the world and from another time. So if you like history or just have a general fascination with finding out about things, I suggest you go catch this film. It’s on Netflix!
(Images from various sources on Google.)
