36 | SEPTEMBER 3 • 2020 I n Václav Marhoul’ s new fairly literal and so “faithful” adaptation of Jerzy Kosinski’ s influential, contro- versial novel The Painted Bird, things are mostly what they seem. An unnamed, orphaned refugee boy (Kosinski described him as a “ gypsy or Jewish stray ... olive- skinned, dark-haired and black- eyed”) trudges between brief, fragile harbors amid the remote villages and elder forests of Eastern Europe under fascism, accepting any hospitality he can find. Over the film’ s near-three hours, he’ s received both well and poorly in discrete episodes, with true security and stability prov- ing elusive. The large international cast of the boy’ s run-ins includes Harvey Keitel, Udo Kier and Stellan Skarsgård. The Holocaust is felt as a constant presence — but an atmospheric, generally destabilizing one rath- er than an immediate threat. Marhoul follows the boy duti- fully (he’ s played by Petr Kotlar), but The Painted Bird’ s screen adaptation never quite lives inside its lead character’ s mind. It could be the nature of stream- ing this at home, but for this viewer the experience of watch- ing ran parallel to the character’ s experience, never intersecting. The film is stately, attractive and precise — successfully con- juring a sense of place and tone. Yet many of its gestures feel dis- tant. Call it the burden of pres- tige, the influence of film-histor- ical bigwigs like Tarkovsky and Bergman. This remove leaves viewers aligned with the story’ s concerns and the character’ s experiences but not exactly “in” them. The procession of hardship and vio- lence onscreen is modulated by a safe, too-tasteful distance for an adaptation of an offbeat, trans- gressive and perverse novel. Bestiality, eye-gouging and dimly ironized bloodshed all fea- ture, and Marhoul’ s team shoots them coolly, cutting swiftly over dead-on depictions of violence in a “ straight,” unglamorous way. The 1965 novel is kind of a morbid picaresque. Kosinski’ s protagonist doesn’ t understand what it’ s like to be deprived of basic human dignity because he knows of little else. It’ s this juxtaposition — of the boy’ s innocence with the adult reader’ s more jaded perspective — that makes for an immersive book: a vision of Europe under fascism delivered through a personal lens (although the author’ s early claim it was autobiographical has been extensively contested). The film adaptation is accom- plished and often beautiful. It is also the first major film to use the hybrid constructed language of Interslavic. But it’ s missing something personal beyond the inhumanity depicted onscreen. Well-told though it may be, it’ s ultimately a story we’ ve already seen. to help support local musicians while giving people access to the type of entertainment they’ ve been missing, ” said Witz, a Brandeis University grad- uate who also has produced Menorah in the D. “ All events meet current state of Michigan event guidelines. ” While live concerts are popu- lar at the annual event, this year’ s music will be offered Sept. 4-7 in a drive-in setting at 6th and Main streets and online Aug. 27-Sept. 3 with nearly 200 per- formances. Among the perform- ers representing a wide range of musical styles will be Thornetta Davis, Laith Al-Saadi, Eva Under Fire and Larry Lee & The Back in the Day Band. Each drive-in performance will deliver a pair of 30-minute, high-energy sets. Concerts are planned to ben- efit local music performers with a total goal of raising $500,000, made possible with the addi- tion of matching grant funding from Oakland County.. “We want to raise money for a hard-hit industry,” Witz said. “There will be application forms for monetary assistance for any musicians who have agreed to perform in concert, virtually or drive-in, if 50 percent of their employment revenue came from the music industry prior to COVID-19.” The “Eats” part of Arts, Beats and Eats will appear directly in communities as food trucks travel to unannounced areas. “We’ re not announcing where the trucks will be so we don’ t overwhelm the neighborhoods,” Witz said. “We’ re trying to be creative, spread some fun around and keep people safe from a crowd perspective.” Arts, Beats & Eats is main- taining its associated health activities for eventgoers, live and online, while supporting people who have been out of work. A live Zumbathon Celebration goes virtual at 9 a.m. Saturday, Sept. 5. Donations of $5 will benefit Forgotten Harvest and the Beats Go On GoFundMe campaign for unemployed musicians. “Stretch for a Cause, Yoga to Live Music” begins at 9 a.m. Sunday, Sept. 6, in the main stage area. The family-friendly program will feature live music by Blackman/Wailin, and the $15 donation fees will be split among local yoga instructors and musicians. “We do not know how long we’ re going to be dealing with COVID-19, so I think it’ s important to move the needle forward in the event industry in a safe fashion,” Witz said. “I think the decisions we make now in exploring creativity, how to do things effectively and what the public might be inter- ested in will shape the future of the industry.” For more information on Arts, Beats & Eats – live and virtual – go to arts- beatseats.com. ARTS, BEATS & EATS continued from page 35 ARTS, BEATS & EATS Jon Witz “We want to raise money for a hard-hit industry.” — JON WITZ Petr Kotlár as “A Boy” in the new adaptation of Jerzy Kozinski’ s novel The Painted Bird. Arts&Life fi lm review GEORGE ELKIND CONTRIBUTING WRITER ‘The Painted Bird’ Film adaptation is beautiful but impersonal. COURTESY OF IFC FILMS Where To Watch ‘ The Painted Bird’ is now available on VOD rental for $6.99 from all major providers.