Frida
Directed by Julie Taymor. US. 2002. R. 123 min.
- Sun, Apr 20, 4:30 pm
In conjunction with the Frida Kahlo exhibit at the Philadelphia Museum of Art (Feb 20 – May 18) The Phoenix Village Art Center is hosting a lecture on Frida Kahlo’s work (3pm at the Art Center) followed by a screening of the Oscar-winning film Frida (2002) at 4:30pm the Colonial. After the film, we will gather at the Thai Elephant for dinner and continued discussion.
Julie Taymor's movie version of Kahlo's life, "Frida," makes the artist seem more like a human being and less like a craft-fair novelty than she has in years. Like Kahlo herself, the picture is imperious and colorful; the opening sequence shows us the courtyard outside of Kahlo's home, a clatter of sun-warmed royal blues, marigold oranges and brick reds, a place where monkeys and fawn-colored dogs scamper like living decorations. It doesn't seem like a real-life courtyard, but like one imagined by an artist, its colors intensified a few notches beyond reality. It seems to be a trick on Taymor's part to plant us inside Kahlo's mind, to start us out by making us see what she sees in precisely the same way she sees it, and it's an effective one. Instead of lengthening the distance between us ordinary schmoes and the exalted artist, Taymor foreshortens it. It's a clever bit of Marxist artistry. (Stephanie Zacharek, Salon.com)
Click here to continue reading Stephanie Zacharek's review.