MOVIE REVIEW
“Art and Craft”
Grade: C+
Starring Mark Landis, Matthew Leininger and Aaron Cowan. Directed by Sam Cullman and Jennifer Grausman.
Unrated. Check listings for theaters. 1 hour, 29 minutes.
Bottom line: A fascinating story that will leave you uneasy
By Moira Macdonald
Seattle Times
Mark Landis seems like someone who, in a movie of his life, might be played by John Malkovich; he’s a pale, whispery ghost of a man in late middle age, slumped and quiet, who speaks with his eyes half-closed. He lives alone in a cluttered Mississippi apartment that once belonged to his mother, and where, in the bedroom, the blue light of an ancient television perpetually glows. In that bedroom, in his copious spare time, he practices his “trade”: He is, astonishingly, one of the most prolific art forgers in the country, and has donated hundreds of fake works to more than 40 museums nationwide, posing as a generous donor and, sometimes, a Jesuit priest.
It’s a fascinating story, full of questions: What motivates Landis in his deceptions, as he doesn’t seem to care about money and gives his work away for free? Is what he’s doing even a crime — isn’t it the responsibility of the museums to determine a work of art’s pedigree? How is it possible that so many museum staffers were duped, particularly when we see Landis’ crude methods? (We watch as he glues a Xerox copy of a painting onto a piece of wood cut at Lowe’s, then dabs paint on it. To make something look older, he pours coffee on it.)
“Art and Craft,” directed by Sam Cullman and Jennifer Grausman, provides some answers, following both Landis and former museum registrar Matthew Leninger, who’s become obsessed with unmasking Landis. It’s the kind of story a filmmaker dreams of — and yet, “Art and Craft” leaves the viewer uneasy. As the fragile Landis’ background of mental illness is uncovered, and his ever-present anxiety is bared to the camera, you almost wish the filmmakers would back away and let the authorities sort this out. He seems like he might fade away under the light.
“I just like to copy things,” whispers Landis, “ ‘cause it’s reassuring.”
