My Kid Could Paint That - worth seeing
Though this documentary lacks polish — particularly when the documentarian turns the camera on himself — it’s still an intriguing examination of how humans can so quickly turn on something that seems too good to be true. In this case that something is 4-year-old Marla, who paints stunning, abstract canvases that are several leagues ahead of the visual babble that almost any kid churns out at that age. The problem is that her work is too good, and the world starts suspecting that something sneaky is afoot. After an initial love-fest, a good old-fashioned witch hunt ensues.
It was fascinating to witness my own outraged reaction to the venomous hate mail being sent to Marla’s parents after having seen so much positive footage of their lives prior to the witch hunt. Even more fascinating to quickly realize how I’ve surely been guilty of the same outrage against people who I don’t know based on a media interpretation. The film goes beyond being the story of a child prodigy and acts as an interesting commentary on social dynamics and media’s role in shaping public opinion. Had sort of a Scarlet Letter feel to it.
If you watch this on DVD, be sure to watch the extra features — they add a lot to the film, which on its own would merely be an above-average effort. 3.5 / 5.0.
