Queen of Paradis takes viewers on a behind the scenes journey of artist Reine Paradis as she creates her new series “Midnight”.
I do not have an artistic bone in my body, but that doesn’t mean I don’t enjoy looking at art. In fact, I always plan a Walt Disney World trip around their Art Festival and spend at least one full day walking around and taking in all the artwork. But I guess I never really thought about all the hard work that actually goes into creating art.
I mean, of course I know that it takes a lot of time and effort, but Queen of Paradis gave me so much more of a look into what it takes to create art. This movie had me hooked from the beginning. I became so intrigued with Reine Paradis, the artist that this indie film is about.
Reine Paradis Does Whatever It Takes
I loved seeing everything she did in order to get the shot she envisioned. She put herself in harms way several times — and was at risk of arrest as well. It is inspiring the things that she sacrifices for her art.
Quite often I found myself eagerly awaiting the reveal of the final image. It was like I NEEDED to know the end result. (Yes, I stopped myself from googling the images in “Midnight” several times while watching the film.) The way she creates surreal visuals out of real visuals is impressive. She is TRULY an artist. And I am now a huge fan of hers.
Both of my daughters consider themselves artists, and while they are still young, they attend art classes to help hone in their skills. That might be part of the reason I enjoyed Queen of Paradis so much. I felt like I could see the wheels turn in Reine’s head, just as I see with my daughters. Who knows, someday I might be driving one (or both) of them all around the country to get the perfect shot for their series.
The Editing & Music
I have got to say, this film was beautifully edited. I loved the shots of Reine planning out her photographs, and the way we were shown them was absolutely perfect. Queen of Paradise had the perfect combination of others talking about Reine, Reine’s process, and the actual shooting of the scenes.
The music that was added throughout the film as great at capturing the feel of each scene. There were moments when my heart was pounding and I was nervous, and other moments where I was over the moon happy. And part of this is because of the music that was incorporated into the film.
If you are an artist, or even if you aren’t, I highly recommend Queen of Paradis.
About Queen of Paradis
After selling out her first exhibition in Los Angeles in 2016, artist Reine Paradis, and her filmmaker husband Carl Lindstrom, embark on a dangerous and surreal road trip across the United States to complete her next body of work. It’s an all-out adventure, an intimate story, and a bold examination of what it takes to make art today.
Queen of Paradis is available on Amazon Prime and in select theaters in Los Angeles.
WINNER of BEST FEATURE FILM in the 2019 LA Indie Film Festival.
WINNER of Special Jury Prize for Editing at 2019 Ashland Independent Film Festival.
Official Selections at 2019 Bentonville Film Festival and Newport Beach Film Festival.
You Might Also Enjoy...

Tessa Smith is a Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer-approved Film and TV Critic. She is also a Freelance Writer. Tessa has been in the Entertainment writing business for ten years and is a member of several Critics Associations including the Critics Choice Association and the Greater Western New York Film Critics Association.