In the Realms of the Unreal (2004)

74

Based on 20 critic reviews provided by

100	Baltimore Sun Michael Sragow Darger made art as if the lives of his subjects depended on it. That's how Yu has made her movie.
100	San Francisco Chronicle Absorbing and exquisite.
91	Entertainment Weekly Owen Gleiberman A singular and haunting experience.
80	The Hollywood Reporter Frank Scheck A fascinating examination of a mysterious life and the truly bizarre art that it spawned.
80	TV Guide Ken Fox The result is an astonishingly complex, striking original portrait of an artist whose deeply personal art, intended for no one but God and himself, demands to be treated on its own terms.
75	Philadelphia Inquirer Steven Rea Has an odd magic about it - the magic of Darger's singularly peculiar dreamworld.
75	New York Post V.A. Musetto Yu presents a compelling, somewhat disturbing portrait of the artist, who in 2000 was the subject of a major exhibit that toured the world.
75	The Globe and Mail (Toronto) Rick Groen The film, like its subject, is more adroit with pictures than with words.
50	New York Daily News Jami Bernard Even without much in the way of hard facts, Yu makes intuitive leaps, using animated segments to bring to life Darger's work, and therefore the man - or as much of him as it is possible to fathom.
50	Chicago Tribune If this documentary were about a serious painter, it would be judged a travesty not unlike commercials that goose up the couple in "American Gothic" or show the Mona Lisa laughing.

Critic Reviews