Loving Vincent

It was a pleasure to become happily lost in this unique film’s world of color and line, and to see two filmmakers’ mad dream come true.

An engrossing exploration of the artist’s final days rendered in his signature painting style.

Loving Vincent is gorgeous. It's a film of immersive beauty.

The painstaking work done by Kobiela and Welchman to turn some of the artist’s most prized canvases into animated scenes can be impressive to behold.

The results are visually dazzling. The movie as a whole is something less.

The film does have enough visual interest and occasional revelation to allow it to limp with dignity to its conclusion.

Dorota Kobiela and Hugh Welchman's film is driven by an off-putting and oxymoronic fusion of reverence and egotism.

Real Cinematic Art Cinema has always been a gloried artwork and we have much more authentic proof in astounding Loving Vincent. An animated construction entirely brought to life by oil paintings, is quintessential proof that cinema has still barely scratched the surface of its reaches. Loving Vincent is landmark event for animation and even biographical storytelling through its majestic vision at the last days of Vincent Van Gogh. Set a after the death of fabled painter, Armand Roulin (Douglas Booth) is possessed with a letter from Van Gogh to his brother Theo before his death, and begins the journey to deliver it. While on call, Roulin encounters all the people close to Vincent before is death gradually trying to put the pieces of what cause his sudden suicide. From this we are taken back to key moments of Van Gogh's life mesmerizingly displayed through the living oil paintings. Generated by 65,000 paintings by over a 100 artist, Loving Vincent is living work of art. First shot as a live action depiction then adapted into paintings, the immersive gallery of scenes is a first in new format of animation. Directors: Dorota Kobiela, and Hugh Welchman take Van Gogh's own artistry into his own biography (almost), from Citizen Kane style narrative, assessing and celebrating the life of one of the worlds if not the most famous painter. From this production becomes transporting cinema experience into the world of Van Gogh and an enchanting watch of magnificent painting and animation. Of course what is the fundamental strength of Loving Vincent is its captivating artwork which for every moment is spectacular, and then you have the real narrative of Van Gogh's last days which on its own is an affectionate journey. Even if you don't not much about the life of Van Gogh this is an enthralling experience. The monumental presence of the paintings is consistently exceptional with wonderful detail and creation put into it. One of the sensational efforts for the film is its sketch of the real actors, making them instantly recognisable on screen, bringing their performance into the art. Although our eyes are set on visual presence, Clint Mansell's score is also a tear-jerking atmosphere throughout the film, capturing the melancholy as well as joy of Van Gogh. Loving Vincent is a visual sensation, proving the amazing talent that animation brings to the screen. This is by far one of the most significant films of the year and is must see experience, especially for art students.

O filme é lindo em qualquer aspecto analisado. O cuidado com cada quadro, cada cena, minuciosamente pintada e colorida em cima de uma fotografia excelente. Tudo nesse filme emociona.

[SPOILER ALERT: This review contains spoilers.]

Here stands a film perhaps as oddly remarkable as the great artist whose demise it documents; Loving Vincent is a Polish-UK co-production charting the final days (and the shady aftermath of which) of Vincent Van Gogh. But what is truly extraordinary about this film is that it is the first animated film created entirely with oil paints, in the notable style of its eponymous painter. Loving Vincent is an ambitious visual experiment, every frame avowedly hand-painted in a pastiche of Van Gogh’s work. It’s an experiment that certainly works; landscapes swirl dreamily across the screens and oozing strokes of paint litter the faces of the film’s players. There is something strangely ethereal about the animation; it’s utterly immersive and beautiful and surely can be appreciated simply for its flair and the pain-staking commitment required to create it. The film was also shot in live-action beforehand; we see Chris O’Dowd, Saoirse Ronan and the rest of the cast embodied within the brushstrokes, in a strangely satisfying and delightfully expressive way. There’s an effortlessness and innovation to the film’s design; the same cannot be said, however, of its plot. Though not unenjoyable, Loving Vincent’s plot is rather thin, comprised of exposition-packed flashbacks and uninspired dialogue. Over-narrated and over-simplified, it never really takes flight or makes much of an impact, despite numerous attempts. We watch as young Armand Roulin (Douglas Booth) seeks to deliver a letter, at the request of his father, from a deceased Vincent to his brother, only to become hooked in finding out the truth behind the artist’s death among the witnesses of his final days. The cast, led by Booth, are lively enough, but are not enough to distract one from a flimsy narrative that begins to feel like a tame episode of Poirot. Despite this, the film is entertaining enough and it’s clear that the true intentions of directors Dorota Kobiela and Hugh Welchman is to impress via the film’s visuals rather than its story. Loving Vincent is a definite mixed bag of a film; visually, it’s exquisite and never excessively dull, but its formulaic and uninspired plot cannot be ignored. For a movie that claims to be a biopic of Vincent Van Gogh, it tells us very little about the man itself, functioning far more as a standard who-dunnit that is gorgeous to watch but, on occasion, feels self-admiring. An interesting film that is worth watching just for its pure style.

The concept here of making a fictional detective story based on conspiracy theory speculation of van Gogh's death via video turned into animation using commercial techniques from circa the early 2000's and Richard Linklater's pioneering "Waking Life" and "A Scanner Darkly" but going a step further by hand painting each frame is simply brilliant. What's less so is actually sitting through it which doesn't overwhelmingly pass the better off at a museum than in a movie theater test.