Art and Craft

Name: Art and Craft
Genre: Documentary
Released: September 19, 2014
Duration: 89 min
Rating: 68

2014

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Generally favorable reviews based on 13 Critic Reviews

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Generally favorable reviews based on 6 Ratings

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7.8

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7.8	User Score Generally favorable reviews based on 6 Ratings

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Art And Craft

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Movie Details & Credits

Oscilloscope Pictures | Release Date: September 19, 2014 | Not Rated

Summary: Mark Landis has been called one of the most prolific art forgers in US history. His impressive body of work spans thirty years, covering a wide range of painting styles and periods that includes 15th Century Icons, Picasso, and even Walt Disney. And while the copies could fetch impressive sums on the open market, Landis isn't in it forMark Landis has been called one of the most prolific art forgers in US history. His impressive body of work spans thirty years, covering a wide range of painting styles and periods that includes 15th Century Icons, Picasso, and even Walt Disney. And while the copies could fetch impressive sums on the open market, Landis isn't in it for money. Posing as a philanthropic donor, a grieving executor of a family member’s will, and most recently as a Jesuit priest, Landis has given away hundreds of works over the years to a staggering list of institutions across the United States. But after duping Matthew Leininger, a tenacious registrar who ultimately discovers the decades-long ruse and sets out to expose his philanthropic escapades to the art world, Landis must confront his own legacy and a chorus of museum professionals clamoring for him to stop. [Oscilloscope Pictures]… Expand

Director: Jennifer Grausman and Mark Becker and Sam Cullman

Genre(s): Documentary

Rating: Not Rated

Runtime: 89 min

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Critic Reviews

The Playlist Rodrigo Perez

Sep 14, 2014

Straightforwardly shot and sensitive of its subject, Art And Craft is a intriguing depiction of counterfeit impulses (both wrongly perceived and irrepressible), immense talent gone awry and what lies behind the desire to create. Read full review

William Goss

Oct 15, 2014

Much like the experts drawn to Landis’ paintings, Art and Craft effectively invites viewers to question the honesty of what’s been placed inside the frame. Read full review

Marc Mohan

Nov 7, 2014

The fascinating tale of master forger Mark Landis is especially bizarre, mostly because it doesn't involve the commission of a crime. Read full review

Peter Debruge

Sep 16, 2014

All sorts of interesting questions swirl beneath the surface. Read full review

Stephen Holden

Sep 18, 2014

Art and Craft adds fuel to the argument that the art market is a rigged game manipulated by curators and gallerists spouting mumbo-jumbo. Read full review

John DeFore

Sep 16, 2014

The film will appeal to art lovers, but some viewers who can hardly tell their Cezannes from Chagalls will find the story fascinating as well. Read full review

Scott Tobias

Sep 23, 2014

Cullman and Grausman extend a lot of sympathy to this strange, lonely, sick man as he goes about his business. But perhaps he’d been better left alone. Read full review

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User Reviews

mjhmoviereviews

Nov 7, 2014

Art and Craft follows the story of one of the most infamous art forgers in the U.S.: Mark Landis. But he doesn't do it for profit - he does it for kicks, convincing museums that he has originals, donating them and getting them to put his fake work on display. The documentary also follows theArt and Craft follows the story of one of the most infamous art forgers in the U.S.: Mark Landis. But he doesn't do it for profit - he does it for kicks, convincing museums that he has originals, donating them and getting them to put his fake work on display. The documentary also follows the people who were working on stopping him, and how for one man Landis became a sort of obsession.

The documentary isn't purely about forgery, it also touches on the theme of metal illnesses. Mark Landis is schizophrenic among other things, and that's part of the reason he does what he does. The man who was chasing him developed OCD while chasing Landis. The documentary does a good job showing how it effects their lives and what they do.

The feature also does a good job showing what goes into making the forgeries. One of my favorite parts of the film was getting to see Mark "sell" a painting to a library. They believed him and he donated it to them, leaving it hanging on the library wall.

One of my main problems with the documentary is that the crew appears to be intruding on Landis' life. He seems like the kind of guy who just wants to be left alone, and is even reluctant to go to a gallery displaying his work.

My other issue is the editing. It's made clear Landis watches a lot of television, so the filmmakers decided to insert occasional shots of TV shows that were at times random and confusing. Sometimes they made sense but others just threw off the pace of the movie.

Overall rating: 2.5 out of four stars. It is dull at parts, but overall it's pretty good.

Reference scale:
Dogfights of the Future < Art and Craft < The Battered Bastards of Baseball.… Expand

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