Inspired by remarkable true events, acclaimed writer/director Pascal Bonitzer’s engrossing dramedy, THE STOLEN PAINTING, follows an auctioneer whose professional and personal integrity is challenged by the discovery of a long-lost masterpiece.
 
Paris, present day. Brash 40-something André Masson (César Award-winner Alex Lutz), a hotshot art appraiser at a prestigious auction house, receives word that a painting by Egon Schiele may have been found in the home of a young factory worker. Though highly sceptical, André travels to view the canvas with his ex-partner Bettina (the superb Léa Drucker) who is also an expert valuator. When the pair view the work, they discover that the painting in possession of the worker was long assumed destroyed by Nazi officials during WWII. For André, the ramifications of this once-in-a-lifetime find, both on his career and his contentious relationship with his unreliable intern Aurore (Louise Chevillotte), will prove both unexpected and transformative.
 
Skilfully brought to life by an array of endearing and duplicitous characters, THE STOLEN PAINTING is a thrilling exploration of the often-cynical world of art dealing and collecting, where the jaw-dropping prices aren't always related to the rarity of the object or the desire of potential customers.