Artists Trail Film: Loving Vincent
DK Welchman & Hugh Welchman, 2017, Poland, UK, USA, Switzerland, Netherlands, Colour, 94 mins, Certificate: 12A
An exploration of Vincent van Gogh’s final days by the young man tasked to deliver the troubled artist’s final letter to his brother, this is a living, breathing, moving painting.
Shot in live action, with real actors (Douglas Booth, Saoirse Ronan and the late, great Helen McCrory among them), it was then treated as a painted animation – each of its 65,000 frames hand painted as an oil painting on canvas, using van Gogh’s technique, created by a team of over one hundred artists.
Directed by the Polish, award wining artist and filmmaker Dorota Kobiela and her British husband, producer, writer and director Hugh Welchman, it is a breathtaking, innovating artistic and technological feat – a piece of art itself.
Reviews:
“Declamatory dialogue is a little too on the nose, but the animation is a mercurial wonder; a snaking, vibrant vision in the golds, ochres and cornflower blues that sing of the artist’s most famous work.” Wendy Ide, The Observer
“As the colors shimmer and shake, we understand how the artist viewed the world, as not only static existence, but as vibrant action.” Robert Daniels, 812filmReviews
“The gorgeous animation alone makes “Loving Vincent” worth the price of admission. And the narrative, if a bit paint-by-numbers, is interesting enough.” Kerry Lengel, Arizona Republic
“Part mystery, part visual experiment, ‘Loving Vincent’ is a reverent ode to the 19th century painter Vincent van Gogh.” Anna Smith, Time Out