Séraphine

If you didn't know Séraphine Louis was a prominent artist you might think Séraphine was a bit odd. We first see her surreptitiously take blood from a butcher shop in a glass vial, which she then takes to a church. There Séraphine mixes in wax from a blown out votive candle. The next scene shows her gathering flowers, no doubt to use in some crazy concoction. Perhaps she's making poison or maybe wine? Turns out she uses these "secret" ingredients to mix her own paint.
Séraphine starts in 1914 and follows our earthy heroine through the next few decades of her life. With the help of a devoted gallery owner she suddenly has the tools to abandon her life as a maid. Both Yolande Moreau as Séraphine and Ulrich Tukur playing her benefactor Helmut Kolle are familiar faces to those who watch foreign films (Amelie, The Lives of Others, The White Ribbon). Séraphine also has its share of prestige awards sweeping (seven out of nine) the French César Awards last year.
The film neatly divides into two phases. One where Seraphine is established as simple but in tune with nature; she talks to the trees and water when she''s not laboring for the wealthy. Helmut attempts to inspire her lot in life by buying her paintings only to have to flee France because he's German and the war has started.
The second half of the film has Helmut tracking down Séraphine after the war and properly establishing her as an artist. This includes commissions that enable her to devote all her time to painting. The crux of the movie has to do with Séraphine's mental health. Is she truly visionary or should she be institutionalized (in the way that society marginalizes creative types) seems to be a question the filmmakers want the audience to ponder. Séraphine utilizes lush moments that constantly fill the screen with beautiful images.