THE WOMAN IN GOLD is the story of Maria Altmann, played by Helen Mirren. She was a member of a prestigious family in Austria, before the invasion of the Nazis. Her home and family were destroyed and valuable art treasures stolen from their home. Now, as Austria recognizes its compliance in history with the Nazi movement, the government opts to hear cases for restitution for those WWII victims. Altmann wants her family's paintings returned, especially one of her aunt, with whom she shared a special friendship. Like most governments, however, Austria is not willing to release the paintings, claiming they are now the country's property and part of its historic culture. Faced with the prospect of challenging an entire government, coupled with museum curators and corrupt politicians, Altmann enlists the aide of her friend's son, Randol Schoenberg, played by Ryan Reynolds.
Reynolds is suffering the same fate Matthew McConaughey and Ben Affleck suffered years back. Now, both are holding Oscars and McConaughey is driving a Lincoln and being parodied by Jim Carrey. but surprisingly Reynolds is fine in this film. He plays well off of Mirren. The story is, in essence, a tale of his coming of age in relation to his heritage. Like many Millennials, Schoenberg thinks the world began with his birthday. It takes a trip to Austria for him to discover the importance and significance of his birthright. Helen Mirren is great as Maria, giving us a no nonsense but likable personality that I may have seen before, but Mirren always gives good performances.
