Critic Reviews

• Desson Thomson, Washington Post

  It is quietly observant, with a detached eye for the telling moment, and the visual compositions are often exquisite.

• Jonathan Rosenbaum, Chicago Reader

  [Chihwaseon] rushes through the life of its subject in nimble leaps and bounds, concentrating on the livelier and more spectacular parts and avoiding the dull historical and biographical stretches.

• Michael Wilmington, Chicago Tribune

  Another masterpiece from one of the world's more neglected great directors, a master artist who here reveals the soul of another.

• Wesley Morris, Boston Globe

  The movie's attention to anthropological and historical detail means things are slow to come alive. But once they do, the nature of Jang's psychic torture is palpable and unmistakable.

• Manohla Dargis, Los Angeles Times

  A vividly entertaining portrait.

• , Seattle Times

  Painted Fire is gorgeous. Even a shot of the dirty and miserable Jang flinging himself about in a bare room of wadded-up paintings turns into a thing of beauty.

• Par Parekh, Film Journal International

  In spite of these few moments of wonder, and even the dense, moving thematic content, the film ultimately doesn't leave a lasting taste.

• MaryAnn Johanson, Flick Filosopher

  [A]n elegant, painterly film...

• Judith Egerton, Courier-Journal (Louisville, KY)

  The sturdy and goateed Choi Min-sik gives an extraordinary performance as the mercurial Ohwon whose moods fluctuate from sadness to rage, anguish, and depression.

• Donald Munro, Fresno Bee

  For all its beauty and artistic ambition, the film remained stubbornly remote and soulless to me.

• Jeff Vice, Deseret News, Salt Lake City

  This Korean drama is a credible portrait of its main character, the revered 19th-century artist Oh Mon Jang Seung-up, and it looks beautiful enough to be a work of art itself.

• Sean Means, Salt Lake Tribune

  Director Im Kwon-Taek steeps this film with reverence for Korean lore and history.

• Neil Smith, BBC

  The problem is, painting isn't a spectator sport, as the interminable scenes of Jang at work continually confirm.

• Geoffrey Macnab, Sight and Sound

  A fascinating, consummately crafted and ultimately moving study of a man who conforms surprisingly closely to western archetypes of the artist as rebel and hedonist.

• Shawn Levy, Oregonian

  It's one of the best films of an artist's life you'll ever see.

Read all 15 critic reviews