Paint

Britt McAdams' directorial debut "Paint," a joyless 96 (thank you) minutes, is an ill-conceived sendup of Public Broadcasting's artist-in-residence, Bob Ross. It's worth saying, the main character in this paint-by-numbers comedy, Carl Nargle (funny), isn't actually Ross. He is Owen Wilson, by way of Art Garfunkel. Yet like Ross, he paints how-to landscapes on public access television, in Vermont where the locals are holdover oddballs from "Newhart." And like Ross, he has a folksy, on-air style, wears denim a lot, sports a Toni Home Perm, and speaks softly (more seductive than instructive). To everyone's surprise, except his, of course, he is a popular success, especially with women, who seem drawn to him (no pun). In one over-played gag, his artwork makes women orgasm; needless to say, he's discovered the joy of painting. Such is, more or less, the premise here: not much else to hang a smock on, just one joke, and McAdams' screenplay beats the devil out of it.

True to form, Wilson returns to his comic roots to bring off his trademarked persona, the same he's honed over the years on television and in movies, and in movies based on television. A natural clown, he selects from a grab bag of expressions, ticks, and quirks. His schtick, one might say, is a limited palette, like a typical Ross landscape: familiar, yet naive. He's also somewhat attractive--from a distance--and can be humorous if given the opportunity, which this movie fails to do, resorting only to the tried and true, as when Carl scrambles to steal newspapers with bad reviews, a bit that's been done before (I think Berle did it).

Carl is typical of Wilson's cast of characters: a self-deluded, man child, fumbling his way through life, could be certifiable, yet laughable, affable--a joke, really. Bob Ross was something of a joke, too, perhaps, but, while the joke was about him, unlike Carl, it was never on him.

What a dull drab for a wonderful opportunity. The director really fell flat and didn't deliver on story or character development. Mostly felt contrived with very little substance outside a few bits that are to indicate who this faux bob ross is as a character. If I had to summarize this film beyond that I would say they really let Owen down on this one. The cover image alone gets you excited, as if to say this is Owen's come-back piece. Instead he got burned and had to do what he could with a script that felt as if it was subjected to writer's block in the first few paragraphs of act one. All in all I wouldn't recommend this film to anyone.

When I first saw the trailer for this movie I thought it would be a Bob Ross semi-biographical movie. However, that is not the case. The only thing bob-ross related is the base charecter of Carl Nargle, and that he has a TV paint show. I accepted this and tried to enjoy the film, but in the end it it knows what it wants to be...but dosen't know how to get there.

First, the positives. It looks pretty good, with nice colors and wood tones but it is ruined sometimes with choppy editing. I did laugh a good amount of times, with all the actors commiting to the heartfelt funny tone. However, lots of the jokes didn't land as well due to poor comedic timing or just played out jokes. The base story is okay, but I have a lot of issues with it.

Like I said, it wants to be a heartfelt comedy about a painter who's golden days are dwindling due to issues in the past and present. They try to throw quirky side charecters in there, but they are really not fleshed out at all so they feel more like NPC's than charecters. The movie also dosen't really give enough time to the storylines that are the most important and dilly dally on other scenes that just feel odd. Why is everyone trying to have sex with Carl Nargle? And then, when the new painter comes in they all suddenly switch and despise him. They have some reason too, but that reason is really only explained once and never seen again. They just tried to mix every color to make a heartfelt painting, but ultimately it just feels confused. Also, the sound mixing is a little off.

In the end, I would not reccomend Paint. It's a movie, and you probably wouldn't be mad watching it, but you would definetly want your money back. It's neither here nor there, and that is what's so dissapointing. Have a great day.

The movie "Paint" has missed the mark with its outdated portrayal of the main character, Carl, played by Owen Wilson. He is so out of touch with modern technology that he doesn't even know what an Uber is or how to use his cellphone. The woman he loved and left, Katherine, played by Michaela Watkins, has been waiting for him for two decades. This only adds to the overall sense of melancholy that encompasses the film. The attitudes and feelings of the film are as antiquated as Carl's wardrobe, leaving me feeling disconnected and disinterested. Only the very talented Stephen Root (plays Tony, Carl's station chief) and the lively Ciara Renée (who plays Ambrosia, Carl's younger and more skilled competitor), manage to bring any energy to the film. Just want to stress the fact that Stephen Root keeps on performing outstanding and is still very much undervalued. The unconvincing flashbacks to his younger self, leave him looking unchanged and uninspired adds insult to injury. Just as the movie, uninspiring! Overall, "Paint" fails to deliver a fascinating story and appealing characters. Its flat approach and outdated attitudes made it difficult for me to connect with the movie. And leaving me feeling unsatisfied and disappointed. The trailer is misleading and disconnected from the movie. This is not the funny Owen I am used to seeing. A 5/10 would suffice here.

...i am sure a lot of people will think this movie is about Bob Ross life, just like i thought so too at the beginning, but it's not. It's a Bob Ross knockoff. The main character Carl Nargle played by Owen Wilson is a fictional character based on Bob Ross, the story is fictional as well so we can say this movie is a parody. Carl Nargle has the same cloud of hair, the same whispery way of speaking, and the same job, painting quaint country vistas on public access TV, but he's not Bob Ross.

I was really disappointed that they just used his character like this, he is an icon and has a lot of fans all around the world!