The Art Star and the Sudanese Twins

The “star” of the title refers to conceptual artist Vanessa Beecroft, who takes center stage in Pietra Brettkelly's provocative documentary, which raises troubling questions about the issue of international adoption, focusing on one wealthy Westerner. Raised in Italy and England, Beecroft found fame in the United States for her performance art featuring nude models. Concerned about the news of genocide in Sudan, Beecroft traveled there to shoot documentary footage, and wound up becoming a nursemaid to a pair of malnourished twins, leading to the publication of a controversial photograph in which Beecroft (dressed like a Madonna) gazes at the siblings (the women of the village find it particularly disrespectful that she insists on photographing the infants naked). She attempts to adopt the motherless duo, telling Brettkelly, “Why not extend our wealth to someone else?” Beecroft meets resistance at every juncture, although it certainly doesn't help that she contacts her lawyer before her husband, social anthropologist Greg Durkin, who admits he feels “alienated” by her decision to move forward without him. Despite her delicate features and soft voice, Beecroft comes across as controlling and single-minded (she admits upfront that her psychiatrist says she's obsessive-compulsive), while Beecroft's mother notes that her daughter was obsessed with babies from an early age. The artist's representative, Jeffrey Deitch, describes her work as “a gigantic self-portrait project,” adding, “Her art and her life intersect completely”—an observation that is borne out in this fascinating documentary profile. DVD extras include audio commentary by the director, and deleted and extended scenes. Highly recommended. Aud: C, P. (K. Fennessy)