MovieChat Forums > Woman in Gold (2015) Discussion > Money can buy anything!!!

Money can buy anything!!!

posted 9 years ago by joy_deep
15 replies | jump to latest

So all those Maria's thoughts, her father's parting words "Remember us" and all those thoughts standing by the window, even deciding to donate the picture to the Austrian museum so that the Woman in gold stays in Austria for Austrian people, in short everything is just gone when someone came up with $$. And they all took the money and forgot everything and lived happily ever after.

And now it rests in New York where no common Austrians can see it.

Once Nazis took it by force, then Americans took it by power.

Those actual facts at the end ruined the movie, IMO.

[–] TxMike 9 years ago

You completely missed the point. She would have preferred it stay in Austria and attempted to negotiate a settlement that would keep it there. But the Austrians wanted to win, and not acknowledge her family as the legit owners. So when the court ruled in her favor she basically said "screw you". They were unwilling to play fair so she had the final say.

Blame the Austrians, they did it to themselves.

..*.. TxMike ..*..
Make a choice, to take a chance, to make a difference.

[–] joy_deep 9 years ago

No. What you said that happened in US court.

The thoughts or words or visuals, everything I mentioned above, happened after they won in Austrian court. Also, the museum curator/owner came up with the same proposal that she had offered at US court. But she was so pissed off with him and his gang that she punished all Austrian people, including her father, her aunt and her family (who even made some kind of wish that the picture remains in that museum), the Austrian artist and all her memories. She herself was an Austrian by birth.

Now how convincing was that? The curator/owner insulted her. She insulted him back. That's ok. But is it possible that the Austrian government and Austrian people made no effort to put some sense into her head and keep the picture in the country? Even they made that effort or not, Maria was so much annoyed and angry and insulted - even after winning the case and insulted back the curator/owner fairly - she forgot everything and left the country along with the picture. Once again, how convincing is that?

The answer to that behaviour, is money. Money can do all the talking, negotiations, can make one forget everything, can make everyone happy and many wonderful such things.

Now here I should mention, I am not talking about the movie. And I take it back when I said "Those actual facts at the end ruined the movie". The movie is ok. All I am talking here is about the Maria character as depicted in the movie.

[–] berniegfletcher 9 years ago

joy You do not have a clue what you are talking about. You want Maria and her family to respect the Austria that murdered thousands of Jewish people, her friends and family, the Austria that stole her family possessions from the walls of her home, confiscated her home as HQ for the trains that took Jews to death camps, then fought her tooth and nail for many years when she tried to get back the art that was looted from her family and rightfully belonged to her family (5 heirs). The Austrian authorities could have kept the Klimt paintings in the Belvedere (I was there two weeks ago), but chose instead to fight for 8 or so long years costing millions of dollars. After they LOST in the Austrian decision, only then did they want to make a deal. Do you seriously think anyone in the family (dead or living) would want the paintings in the Austria that exterminated or exiled almost all of the Jewish people in Vienna? If you read the book, "The Lady in Gold" you would understand what actually happened.
If you think it was about money, you obviously have not read the many posts on these boards about what really motivated Maria. Money? An ignorant statement. Her aunt Adele had died long before the Nazis and her living family members made it clear there was no way Adele would have wanted Austria to have the paintings after the Holocaust. The U.S. gave her a home. Maria's father had his beloved cello stolen from his home and died a broken man. You seem to think "forgive and forget" would be the right way to go. You need to read a little history. Cynics believe money can buy anything. To a woman around 90. money was hardly an issue. She lived simply to her last days and was still working at 85.

[–] joy_deep 9 years ago

Yes. I got the point now. I don't know anything about Austria. I didn't know they were Austrian Nazis. Also I didn't think about the Jewish angle. Thank you very much for explaining the situation at that time. Now I feel like I should watch the movie again. This time I guess I could appreciate the movie more.

Thanks again.

[–] berniegfletcher 9 years ago

Hi joydeep, it is brave of you to admit that you didn't know the whole story. We all can learn from history. Austria is now a beautiful place with wonderful people, but 1938 was a different story. Hitler was Austrian-born and was rejected by the art school in Vienna. If only he had been a better painter, the world may have been spared a world war.

[–] truetexian 9 years ago

joy, i concur it takes guts, even online, to admit what you have and so i commend you for that. The movie dealt with this though and you should have gotten somewhat of an inkling into this from watching it. it points out that hitler was austrian. this was not a film with a hidden agenda.

[–] sfarkus 9 years ago

Kudos, Joy!

[–] TeraisaWrites 8 years ago

Agreed! Joy is one of only a few! Way to go. You inspire me to be more humble. Thank you.

[–] vicky_lc2001 (1907) 7 years ago

How could you not have thought of the Austrians being NAZIs or supported the NAZIs back then? or considered the Jewish angle and what was done to Maria and her family? it was all shown on film?

[–] Sugarminx 8 years ago

You want Maria and her family to respect the Austria that murdered thousands of Jewish people, her friends and family, the Austria that stole her family possessions from the walls of her home...

The interesting thing about this is that it looks like you're saying that the reason she took the paintings back to the US was because she wanted to 'punish' (for want of a better term) Austria for doing what they did during the war:

Do you seriously think anyone in the family (dead or living) would want the paintings in the Austria that exterminated or exiled almost all of the Jewish people in Vienna?

It seemed to me, however, that she was, initially, perfectly willing to let the art stay where it was, as long as they admitted it belonged to her and remunerated her for it(?) In this case then, her 'high principles' are flying out the window.

However, since the authorities in Austria wanted to be difficult and not budge an inch, she took her artwork with her back to America.

I got the feeling that, for 'sentimental' reasons, she might have liked it to remain in Austria.

Could she not have given it to another museum there?

I should add that I am only speaking from what I saw in the film. I haven't read the book.

Do the P-I-G-E-O-N

[–] vicky_lc2001 (1907) 7 years ago

She was initially willing because she wanted to believe Austria had changed, the Austrian represented in Bruhl who helped her. Because deep down she is still Austrian and wanted the country she was born in to recognize the sins they committed against her, her family, and people. But the response she got was the opposite.

[–] truetexian 9 years ago

Right on, TxMike

[–] sweetpeajrt 9 years ago

I have a feeling Maria's family would not be offended that the paintings are no longer in the country that betrayed them.

[–] sfarkus 9 years ago

Yes money can buy anything, even the opportunity for the general public to view and enjoy great works of art in a NY gallery, even a law practice dedicated for the cause of WW2 art restitution, even valuable financial gifts to many charities and causes.

[–] fani (431) 7 years ago

You didn't get it.

Ask yourself - what is better? Their painting, their memories are better remembered by an old lady and select few from the family and then forgotten as she dies or better remembered by it being on display for many more to see and remember them and recount their life story?

She was not opposed to Austrian govt/Belvedere displaying it. It belonged to her and was taken from them with no say from her.

It was good that she got to finally own it again and put it up on display. It was her property and it is fair she got paid for it and it was done as she willed.