I absolutely loathe performance art and the pretentiousness that comes with it. If fact, aside from movies and some abstract pieces, I am not all that interested in art. However, it is impossible not to like this film. Abramovic is hypnotic throughout and the film editors do a great job of cutting out virtually all of the annoyances that sometimes plague these types documentaries. I am a simple-minded person who enjoys beer, boxing and cars. I do not know my wines nor am I an avid NY Times reader. But, one thing I am sure of is that you will love this film. Just give it 15 minutes and you will be hooked.

I have heard of Marina Abramovic but didn't know much about her and was scared it would all be a bit pretentious or she wouldn't be any good or to my taste, (even though I like modern art, but not all of it of course) but I found her truly inspiring, not only that but she is truly down to earth and real, she truly believes in her work and went to great lengths for her art and still does, her life story is telling of this and very engrossing. The exercises she puts the young people through whom she entrusts with reproducing her work for her exhibition, also shows just how much she digs into her own being to give back to others in her art and to her students. I guess I was scared performance art wouldn't live up to what I expected it to be. Whether or not you appreciate her art is not really the point to me, although many people do, it's more important that it comes from a genuine place and that to me makes is true expression, you cannot argue with that. The most touching part of the documentary for me however, was definitely her piece for the exhibition. Marina sat in a chair (initially with a table in between her and the person) in silence for three months, only looking up when a member of the public sat in a chair opposite her. This is no easy feat if you consider we can't even be still for 5mins without back pain or needing to check our iPhones. The intensity and genuine affection/serenity/love and calm she gives each and every individual is deeply moving. She gives each person the attention they deserve, it moved me to tears several times, as it did some of the people sitting opposite her. It made me question just how much we truly "see" each others, or even whether we even really try often enough, how much do we truly care about someones true self and feelings, how many times do we get that attention from someone else, how many lonely people there are in the world. It also made me consider what true connection, love and acceptance can do for the human soul and for the serenity of the world in general and that we are all seeking love. The power of Buddhism and it's principles really do come to light in her work in a very real way. It's made me want to be more accepting of others and myself, it's also made me realise just how deep the need for connection truly goes. Her observation that she becomes someone's mirror and that she can feel people's pain and feelings in a gaze, was telling. I now understand even more deeply how important my need for connection truly is and how it affects me emotionally. Connecting to yourself, others and your "art" or whatever makes you happy is more important than ever in this super busy hyper world, be still and re-focus :)

Fascinating, unexpectedly deeply moving portrait of Marina Abromovic, who is sometimes called 'the grandmother of performance art" and her hugely successful retrospective at New York's Museum of Modern Art'. While her past history is never less then tremendously engrossing, the most powerful moments of the film are those showing her new work, unveiled for the retrospective called 'The Artist is Present'. For 3 months, Ms. Abromovic simply sat in a chair all day, taking no breaks, looking into the eyes of any museum guest who sat down opposite her. No talk, and very little movement. Yet these encounters are tremendously powerful, often moving both participants to tears (and some of us watching the film as well). This is 'art' taken to it's most simple, naked level. Connection between two strangers, each coming away different for the encounter. While all this may sound dry and theoretic, the pure honest emotion and presence the 63 year old artist brings to her Herculean task make watching the film anything but.

This is a documentary about how long it took for Marina Abramovic to get famous. It's a long view of a life lived in art and for art and then suddenly, late in life, to discover that all those years spent in obscurity are finally paying off. That's interesting. But that's all the documentary is about. Why is her art worthy? What has been the arc of her life's work? How has it evolved? I might as well have watched a film about Kim Kardashian and the nature of fame. This is more an adulation of fame itself than an analysis of the power of art. Very disappointing. The frame for the film is the build up to her most famous work, The Artist is Present, at MOMA, where, individually, members of the public were allowed to sit in a chair opposite Ms. Abramovic and stare into her face. The impact of this experience seems to have been profound. Ms. Abramovic's face is magnificent, filled with pain, deep silence and supreme mystery. She did this every day for three months. The sheer fortitude that this must have taken is astounding. The amount of raw emotion that she must have absorbed is exhausting just to think about. To have heard her speak on camera about this experience would have been fascinating. But instead we get a facile look at the least interesting aspect of her life; the fact that she is now famous. I'm glad for her but it's a small, mundane detail of a life lived with far more complexity than this documentary affords her.