Milan Records release the original soundtrack to The Painter and the Thief with music by award-winning composer Uno Helmersson. Director Benjamin Ree’s latest documentary focuses on the relationship between artist Barbora Kysilkova and the thief who stole her paintings...

Uno Helmersson (Bobbi Jene, Hacker, The Lion Woman, Magnus) delivers a strictly functional score for The Painter and the Thief. While obviously perfect for the documentary it's composed for, listened to outside of the movie it feels like someone has ripped the heart of it, leaving just the bare bones - a project will all the enjoyable elements squeezed out of it.

There are no themes to get behind, or set pieces that will enrich your in any way, just a collection of cold, clinical drawn out tracks, which was a surprise, considering the synopsis of the documentary: "The movie tells the story of a Czech artist, who, desperate for answers about the theft of her two paintings, seeks out and befriends the career criminal who stole them. After inviting her thief to sit for a portrait, the two form an improbable relationship and an inextricable bond that will forever link these lonely souls..."

As atmospheric as it might be, this is a rather bland offering which is mainly comprised of background music cues.

5

Darren Rea