whether or not poverty eventually killed Maud Lewis, Maudie is a convincing testament to an impressively idiosyncratic spirit who rose above all circumstances
stick with the movie for its leads, Sally Hawkins and Ethan Hawke, a beautifully matched pair who open up two closed people, unleashing torrents of feeling
despite fiercely committed performances, Maudie's dedication to authenticity makes the film feel like a rigid antique, and it consequently plays like a pop-up version of a thoroughly written Wikipedia entry, albeit a charming one
"Maudie" takes the gnarled hand of its subject, and the deep satisfaction of created art, and finds more to connect the two than just a dipped paintbrush