Made at the height of the controversy over Mann's allegedly eroticized portraits of her own children, "Blood Ties" decried such criticism while simultaneously showing Mann arraying one of her daughter/models in pearls, lipstick and an attitude of precocious sexuality. In short, Cantor's perspective can't really be trusted. "What Remains," set largely on the Mann family's Virginia farm, assumes the same hagiographic take on the artist, a savvy self-promoter. Central to the film is the creation of Mann's "What Remains" series about death and bodily decay. When the show is canceled by New York's Pace gallery, the movie assumes that the Philistines have taken over the Manhattan art world. What's missing -- a few objective assessments of the work -- were not only necessary but obligatory.

Camera (color, DV/Super-16), Paul Dokuchitz; editor, Pax Wassermann; music, Billy Cote. Reviewed at Sundance Film Festival (Spectrum), Jan. 22, 2006. Running time: 80 MIN.