My Kid Could Paint That

A great documentary and I have to commend Amir Bar-Lev for trying his best to be unbiased but when he's unable to do so he clearly states what he needs to know, personally and for his documentary, while still leaving it open-ended as best he can. This shows the girl and her family in a sympathetic light, though I believe it's clear there is something shady going on. To be honest I'm not an art critic but I thought most of the paintings shown were impressive, regardless of who painted them.

The film succeeds on many levels: the artwork is genuinely beautiful and intriguing, she's an adorable character, and issues about art and family and exploitation are raised. It got me thinking a lot about my own conceptions of art: the value of abstract art, the relative importance of authorial intent, and so forth. There is also a controversy, and Bar-Lev questions his own role in it, and there are questions that are left for the viewer to answer. A thought-provoking, entertaining movie.

An exemplary documentary! Sort of like Capturing the Friedmans, it twists-and-turns and does not mold a uniform opinion in its viewers, leaving them conflicted or unsure instead. It really illuminates for the story all those possible questions about parenting, about the aesthetics of abstract art, about the institutional forces in the art world, about the media. Bar-Lev is a laudably candid documentarist and does not shy away from openly examining his own role in the affair.

A little one sided but still very interesting. Shifts from "What is Art?" to "Does she do it all her self?" to a close study of the family at various parts of the film, both effortlessly and while still keeping us entertained and interested. My opinion; the dad helped...A LOT!

A documentary that does a great job of making its case without making accusations. The evidence, subjects and inclinations speak strongly for themselves. Perhaps the film leans towards one direction, but only because it seems the truth does, as well. It's excruciating to watch Marla seemingly and inadvertently rat out her parents.

Creepy parents.

Loved the way that film moved from a narrative about this family to become something much more interesting: an examination of the question "How does the art world determine great art?" and the way that stories are shaped and presented by the media. Very well done.

Fascinating meditation on the nature of art (and send-up of the pretensions of the art collector community). The most revelatory moment is the child psychologist’s observation that Olmstead paints “like a child” – in its way, the film plays like a slow-moving horror show of exploitation of that fact (parents, gallery owners and the art world); skin-crawling are the adults in Olmstead’s life assigning artistic intention to her, followed by the dismay and embarrassment when she lets them down.

Too much in love with itself...

There are some "meta" elements that I like. The main subject of the girl's paintings is interesting enough, but then a twist happens that makes it become partially about the process of documentary filmmaking itself.

The father is a bit of a creep, and the mother looks a lot like a blonde Michelle Bachmann. I wish the film were a bit more about the nature of abstract art, and less about the identity of the artist.

Rich and compelling. Ron Burgandyisms aside, you couldn't ask for more in this examination of modern art, what we value in art, how commerce tranforms art, and the artist's responsibility to his/her subject. It's almost too much for one little film.

I shit on a canvas and it's sold in New York art galleries.

I think I know what really happened. The gallery owner and dad were in cahoots. They planned to expose AB-Ex as a fraud... and then the money startrf rolling in

"effortlessly entertaining" (i love how these reviews can say the exact words for me)

The Exit Through the Gift Shop for abstract art

Waaay too biased for what is ultimately still an open-ended matter, but still a pretty good documentary. There is never substantial evidence given for either side. I personally think there was something shady going on, but I'm cynical.

Entertaining, but the truth seems fairly obvious.

I'm not a big fan of documentaries, but "My Kid Could Paint" is a REALLY good one. At face value, the movie explores the tale of a 4-year old girl who becomes famous in the art world as she magically creates highly sought after pieces of work. The mystery would appear to be. . , did she create them herself? But, as the documentary moves along, we come to find out there are many other questions to ponder. . . , including "what is art" itself.

"Its insistent search for the truth--about art, success, family--is what keeps the film from turning into a twee human-interest column blown to main-feature length." - Fernando F. Croce

This is an interesting documentary that turns fascinating in the 2nd half, even if that fascination is a bit like watching a slow motion car wreck. Marla's paintings are ... decent. They are esthetically pleasing abstract works that are pretty clearly not worth anything like the money being paid for them. Their value gets caught up in a frenzy involving their origins and a lot of values and ideas that people are imposing on the work of a four year old.

My only real complaint about this is listening to the documentarian's voice. I understand his dilemma, but telling us instead of finding the footage to explain his perspective just felt like inserting himself into the story. Once you get past that, though, this film becomes an amazing exploration of childhood, play, art, the stories we tell ourselves, and media gong shows. There are so many moving pieces here. This film stuck with me like no others that I have seen this year.

When I'm thinking about art themes brought up by this film are almost always raised.