Overview
A harrowing journey of survival and self-discovery in a war-torn landscape.
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Measured
- Intensity
- Extreme
- Complexity
- Layered
- Violence
- Graphic
- harrowing
- oppressive
- austere
- serious film night
- historical cinema study
What critics said
Critics broadly praised Václav Marhoul's stark visual craft and uncompromising Holocaust imagery, while acknowledging the film's punishing bleakness and extreme violence.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
The film is shot in black and white, turning the boy's journey through ravaged Eastern Europe into austere, painterly tableaux.
Joska experiences wartime persecution, violence, and social collapse without fully understanding the forces shaping his ordeal.
The boy moves through isolated communities governed by prejudice, superstition, exploitation, and shifting rules of survival.
Critics repeatedly describe the film as brutally dark, searing, and difficult to watch because of its violence and rape scenes.
Films like The Painted Bird, and why
Son of Saul
shared Holocaust-era child perspective, devastating wartime brutality, and unflinching historical trauma
Ivan's Childhood
shared bleak war setting, vulnerable child protagonist, and expressionistic treatment of human cruelty
Come and See
shared Eastern European wartime atmosphere, allegorical violence, and harrowing depiction of social disintegration
The Turin Horse
shared austere black-and-white imagery, moral extremity, and difficult meditation on violence and survival
Movie Details
- Director
- Václav Marhoul
- Release Date
- 2019-09-12
- Runtime
- 169 min
- Rating
- 7.1 / 10 (196)
Cast
- Petr Kotlár
- Nina Šunevič
- Alla Sokolova
- Udo Kier
- Michaela Doležalová
- Stellan Skarsgård
- Harvey Keitel
- Julian Sands
- Júlia Vidrnáková
- Lech Dyblik
Where to watch in United States
- Streaming
- Philo, AMC Plus Apple TV channel, AMC+ Amazon Channel, AMC+ Roku Premium Channel, AMC+, Sundance Now
- Rent
- Apple TV Store, Fandango At Home
- Buy
- Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is The Painted Bird about?
- A nameless boy crosses a ravaged Eastern European landscape where wartime prejudice and violence test the limits of survival and humanity.
- What is The Painted Bird like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of The Painted Bird as measured, its intensity as extreme and its storytelling as layered.
- Is The Painted Bird violent?
- Yes. Ember rates the violence in The Painted Bird as graphic.
- What did critics think of The Painted Bird?
- Critics broadly praised Václav Marhoul's stark visual craft and uncompromising Holocaust imagery, while acknowledging the film's punishing bleakness and extreme violence.
- Which films are like The Painted Bird?
- Films with a similar feel include Son of Saul, Ivan's Childhood, Come and See, and The Turin Horse.
- How long is The Painted Bird?
- The Painted Bird runs 169 minutes.
- Where can I watch The Painted Bird?
- In United States, The Painted Bird streams on Philo, AMC Plus Apple TV channel, AMC+ Amazon Channel, AMC+ Roku Premium Channel, AMC+, Sundance Now.
