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      The Mystery of Picasso

      PG Released Oct 7, 1957 1 hr. 27 min. Documentary List
      88% 24 Reviews Tomatometer 83% 500+ Ratings Audience Score Director Henri-Georges Clouzot peers into the imagination of Pablo Picasso's studio and emerges with a quiet documentary that captures the revolutionary painter's creative process. Through a combination of stop-motion and time-lapse photography, Picasso's Cubist work comes to life on screen. Paint strokes and splashes of color appear as if by magic, as empty canvases become platforms for a series of daring and original drawings and paintings that exist only within the confines of this film. Read More Read Less Watch on Fandango at Home Premiered Nov 10 Buy Now

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      Audience Reviews

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      Audience Member It's hard to know what to write about this one. The film, which was made by Henri-Georges Clouzot, better known for directing the Hitchcockian thriller Diabolique, consists almost entirely of watching Pablo Picasso paint. Through a special apparatus the filmmakers devised, you don't actually look over Picasso's should as he paints, but see the art as it appears through a translucent canvas on the side opposite from Picasso. The effect is as if you were watching the images just spontaneously appear on their own. I guess this process must have meant Picasso painted all of these images as if in a mirror, which is impressive in and of itself. Some of the paintings we watch come to life stroke by stroke; others are treated in a more time-lapse sort of way where we see stages of the painting's progress. Clouzot explicitly claims at the beginning of the film that watching Picasso's hand in this way will let us know what is going on in his mind, but I'm not so sure that that actually happens in this movie. It was interesting in its own way to watch the art just appear, but I'm not sure I have any more insight into Picasso's mind than I did before I watched the film. At its best, the conjunction of the images and the music written for the film does make it a fun, one-of-a-kind experience. It's definitely not without interest, but I think the movie unfortunately fails to prove its own explicit thesis. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 02/23/23 Full Review Audience Member A unique documentary film from 1956, Le Mystère Picasso features the genius artist in the later years of his career at work in the studio. Each segment of the film presents his creation of a unique painting, some color and some black and white, varying in length and subject matter. I especially recommend this film to fans of Picasso and students of art in general, as it is a rare glimpse into the mind and hand of one of history's most revered cultural figures. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 01/25/23 Full Review Audience Member A must-see for anyone who appreciates Picasso's work. A fascinating look into his creative process. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 02/21/23 Full Review Audience Member Great look into what it is to create art, and with Picasso no less, made by a Master French director! Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 02/06/23 Full Review Audience Member Fascinating doc that actually shows Picasso working on transparent canvasses. A nice insight into the creative process. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 01/27/23 Full Review Audience Member Documentary showing Picasso doing his drawings with a felt-tip pen (or someting like it), encouraged by Claude Renoir (Renoirs grandson no less). A little bit like watching Rolf Harris at work ("Can you guess what it is yet?") but better... after all, it's Picasso. PICASSO!! Bloody fantastic. I was mesmerized. <img src="http://www.blockmuseum.northwestern.edu/block-cinema/images/fall%202010/MysteryOfPicasso.jpg"> Rated 5 out of 5 stars 02/22/23 Full Review Read all reviews Post a rating

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      The Mystery of Picasso

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      Critics Reviews

      View All (24) Critics Reviews
      Chuck Bowen Slant Magazine Henri-Georges Clouzot's 1956 documentary reveals art to be a life of many deaths. Rated: 3.5/4 Feb 27, 2019 Full Review Peter Keough Boston Globe [T]his film demonstrates how an artwork made in time and from time can offer a glimpse into eternity. Rated: 3/4 Jan 9, 2019 Full Review Bosley Crowther New York Times We wonder how many moviegoers will want to sit for well more than an hour and watch a largely repetitious performance that amounts to a sheer artistic stunt. Rated: 2.5/5 Mar 25, 2006 Full Review André Bazin Cahiers du Cinéma The Picasso Mystery is [Clouzot's] most revealing work, for this filmmaker’s genius appears here in its purest state by taking itself to the limit. Jun 12, 2023 Full Review Film Culture Staff Film Culture Clouzot, with his first film on art, demonstrates the proper technique for a cinematic study of a painter. An unforgettable experience for both art-lovers and film enthusiasts. Jun 7, 2022 Full Review Kathy Fennessy Video Librarian Magazine Henri-Georges Clouzot tapped Jean Renoir's nephew Claude Renoir (The River) as a cinematographer and Georges Auric (La Belle et la Bête) as a composer. Together, they crafted a uniquely thrilling work. Rated: 3.5/4 Mar 25, 2022 Full Review Read all reviews

      Movie Info

      Synopsis Director Henri-Georges Clouzot peers into the imagination of Pablo Picasso's studio and emerges with a quiet documentary that captures the revolutionary painter's creative process. Through a combination of stop-motion and time-lapse photography, Picasso's Cubist work comes to life on screen. Paint strokes and splashes of color appear as if by magic, as empty canvases become platforms for a series of daring and original drawings and paintings that exist only within the confines of this film.
      Director
      Henri-Georges Clouzot
      Screenwriter
      Henri-Georges Clouzot, Pablo Picasso
      Distributor
      BuyIndies.com Inc., Samuel Goldwyn Company, Lopert Pictures Corp., Milestone Film & Video
      Production Co
      Filmsonor
      Rating
      PG
      Genre
      Documentary
      Original Language
      French (Canada)
      Release Date (Theaters)
      Oct 7, 1957, Original
      Release Date (Streaming)
      Nov 9, 2021
      Box Office (Gross USA)
      $247.3K
      Sound Mix
      Mono
      Aspect Ratio
      70mm
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