Hello there and welcome to Thursday Movie Picks a weekly series where you share movie picks each Thursday. The rules are simple simple: based on the theme of the week pick three to five movies and tell us why you picked them. For further details and the schedule visit the series main page here.
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This week's Thursday Movie Picks is Movies About Artists (Painters)
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We've had themes on writers and musicians, so I thought let's do one on painters. Did I realise there aren't a great many movies about them, maybe not. My choices were slim, in fact I think these were the only 3 I've seen.
A fictional tale about the unknown girl in Vermeer's famous painting. I've picked this one before so I'll keep this short. Love this one. It's slow moving but so good and such a beautiful looking film . The set design and the lighting makes everything look like they came off the paintings.
Renoir (2012)
Jean Renoir the son of the famous painter returns home during World War I to convalesce after being wounded. Assisting his father, Jean meets his latest young muse who would become his own muse in his eventual filmmaking career. Like the Girl with a Pearl Earring this film was just gorgeous. I came into the film without reading the synopsis thinking it was about the painter; it's actually more about the family and their relationship. I knew nothing of the painter Renoir beyond just having seen his paintings; he was an old man the time the film is set, suffering from arthritis affecting his hands which required him an assistant to prepare his brushes and place them in his hands but continued to paint till the end which was just fascinating.
Summer in February (2013)Renoir (2012)
Jean Renoir the son of the famous painter returns home during World War I to convalesce after being wounded. Assisting his father, Jean meets his latest young muse who would become his own muse in his eventual filmmaking career. Like the Girl with a Pearl Earring this film was just gorgeous. I came into the film without reading the synopsis thinking it was about the painter; it's actually more about the family and their relationship. I knew nothing of the painter Renoir beyond just having seen his paintings; he was an old man the time the film is set, suffering from arthritis affecting his hands which required him an assistant to prepare his brushes and place them in his hands but continued to paint till the end which was just fascinating.
A love triangle involving two painters and a land agent at an artist colony in Cornwall. The movie was unfortunately very dull, I just could not care for the story. Unlike the above two films that took total advantage of them being films about artists and using their work as a reference for the visual style of the movie, Summer in February doesn't quite do that; it doesn't have a visual identity. I think it's probably because it features more than one artists it couldn't exactly amalgamate all their artistic style and turn it into the film's visual style which takes out the fun of watching a film about artists.
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I haven't seen any of these but I'm interested in seeing Renoir, I quite like his work and I'd like to get to know him better.
ReplyDeleteThis is my first time joining in and I'm not sure how regular I'll be with the hop but I've enjoyed Birgit's line up often and decided to give it a shot. This is the sort of movies I am not drawn to and found it difficult to find anything remotely interesting me. Of them films you offered today, I think I'm drawn to "Girl With A Pearl Earring". I will see if that's available on Netflix or Amazon Prime. I have my contribution at the bottom of my scheduled post. Have a good day and thanks for hosting the fun!
ReplyDeleteI also chose Girl with the Pearl Earring. I love that you went with Summer in February. I think I must have liked it more than you though. lol
ReplyDeleteGirl with the Pear Earring is one of those films that I forget how good they are. Its beautifully made and yes the design is divine.
ReplyDeleteI haven't seen Renoir but have wanted to since it was in cinemas.
I agree about Summer in February - it is dull which is annoying as the cast are great. Its tragic story set in beyond beautiful Cornwall. But the stories and art are far better than the actual film.
Haven't seen any of these. I do want to see TGwtPE, have for some time. I just keep putting it off, for some reason.
ReplyDeleteLoved Girl with the Pearl Earring. Colin Firth, Judy Parfitt and Scarlett, who was exceptionally good casting since she resembles the actual painting, were all spot on and the period detail was strong.
ReplyDeleteI didn't care much for Summer in February outside of the scenery and I haven't seen Renoir but that one sounds worth seeking out.
I agree films about painters are pretty thin on the ground but I did come up with three, surprised I forgot about Girl with the Pearl Earring.
The Naked Maja (1958)-Tale of the renowned painter Francisco Goya (Anthony Franciosa) and his passionate affair with the Duchess of Alba (Ava Gardner) , purportedly the model for the title painting. Set against Spain’s war with France and the Inquisition, though shot in Italy, the film is a visual treat with a good performance by Gardner but missing a certain spark, perhaps due to the fact that the stars detested each other behind the scenes.
Lust for Life (1956)-Biography of Vincent Van Gogh with an intense, driven performance by near lookalike Kirk Douglas as the tortured artist. Since he wasn’t acknowledged until after his death the film is a relentlessly grim look at the cost and weight of unrecognized genius. Overlong but loaded with works by the master.
The Moon and Sixpence (1942)-Inspired by the life of Paul Gauguin and based on the Somerset Maugham novel, the film tells the story of Charles Strickland (George Sanders) who throws his staid life as a married stockbroker away to run away to the South Seas to paint with nary a thought to the consequences. Well-acted with a superior cast but the lead character is an almost completely despicable person so it’s difficult to care too much for his story or fate.
I read about this fun hop on Curious as a Cathy. I hope to join next week. Pollock was an excellent artist film Ed Harris was great.
ReplyDeleteHaven't watched any of these actually. Seems like most films about painters are period pieces, which hasn't been my favorite since forever.
ReplyDelete