Product Details

• Actors: John Hurt, Marika Rivera, Gabriella Trsek
• Directors: Paul Cox, Gerrit Messiaen, Robert Visser
• Writers: Paul Cox, Gerrit Messiaen, Robert Visser
• Producers: Gerrit Messiaen, Robert Visser, Roland Schulte, Tony Llewellyn-Jones
• Format: Color, NTSC
• Language: English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo)
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  
• Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Rated: NR (Not Rated)
• Studio: New Video Group
• DVD Release Date: August 30, 2005
• Run Time: 95 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (17 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B0009U6XD4
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #18,221 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)
• For more information about "Vincent: The Life and Death of Vincent Van Gogh" visit the Internet Movie Database (IMDb)

Editorial Reviews

VINCENT:LIFE AND DEATH OF VINCENT VAN - DVD Movie

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

28 of 29 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars In his own words..., November 10, 2005

By 

Rebecca Johnson "The Rebecca Review" (Washington State) - See all my reviews
(COMMUNITY FORUM 04)    (TOP 50 REVIEWER)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Vincent: The Life and Death of Vincent Van Gogh (DVD)

"I will not live without love." ~Vincent van Gogh

The story of Vincent van Gogh's life seems best told in his own words, complete with casual sketches, detailed drawings and famous paintings. In the spirit of "Crows" in Akira Kurosawa's Dreams (where we see the Langlois Bridge and Crows in the Wheatfields brought to life), we are entertained by visions of painting after painting. It is fun to watch Akira Kurosawa's Dreams after viewing this movie because then you recognize the paintings that were brought to life in a dream of pure visual delight.

The Café Terrace, Yellow House, Fishing Boats, Bedroom at Arles, Starry Night and Sunflowers are some of the paintings featured, but there is an entire world of Vincent van Gogh's art that is introduced with analytical letters written to his brother. In these letters he tells his brother of the art he is working on and his motivating influences all while we the viewer are entertained with the art, scenes from nature and the acting out of various scenes (Night Café with Pool Table) that eventually became paintings. There are fields of olive trees from Olive Trees 1889 and Vincent's letter speaks of the difficulty of capturing the colors in the soil and tree bark.

When you hear the story of Vincent van Gogh's life in his own words, suddenly he becomes so much more than a famous artist. His life is filled with tragedy and hardship, but he is also able to find stunning beauty through his love of philosophy and his view of the world seems to remain relatively positive right up until his death. He not only travels, he also lives with Gauguin. The art shown after living with Gauguin shows how being able to relate to someone like himself increased his creativity.

He speaks of how he is a self-taught artist and how thankful he is that he was not trained and therefore had to experiment with paint to produce eye-catching effects. As he travels, his world expands and so does his art. He tries to capture his experience in 1,800 works during his life and while they can't all be shown in this movie, the director tries to capture as many beautiful scenes and pieces of art as he can in as many ways film allows. The creativity is delightful as actors take their places and then a picture emerges.

"How lovely yellow is." ~Vincent van Gogh

He seems far from debilitating madness in his letters (he talks about episodes) and more inclined towards deep contemplations and philosophical discussions. He seems to be reaching out to a world that does not quite understand him all while trying to make the lives of those around him less lonely.

The movie begins with his lofty spiritual goals and ends with his death. We learn so much about this artist, of his being homesick for the land of pictures and how he felt compelled to capture the daily activities of the peasants.

The goodness in his heart truly shines through the darkness of his later days as he helps a woman most would have shunned and must live without the love of the woman he wanted to marry.

Through a weaving of philosophy and art, Paul Cox created a stunning and somewhat mesmerizing journey through the life of Vincent van Gogh (1853-1890). I watched both the movie and the interview three times because the thoughts and experiences are so compelling. Of all the movies I've seen on an artist's life, this is my favorite. What makes this truly memorable are the letters from Vincent to Theo read eloquently by John Hurt.

After watching this, you may find yourself looking for a book about Vincent van Gogh's art or his letters in order to find some of the art shown in this movie or to expand your knowledge of his writing and philosophy. While many emphasize the madness, this movie emphasizes the struggle for beauty and the unending desire of the artist to capture all that he loves.

~The Rebecca Review

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Definitive Van Gogh, September 27, 2005

By 

R. Epstein "asanisimasa" (USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Vincent: The Life and Death of Vincent Van Gogh (DVD)

I can only imagine how pleased Van Gogh would be at seeing his work articulated through Paul Cox's lens. Interspersed with countless images of Van Gogh's original work, are cinematic images of the landscapes, the still-lifes, the town, and the people that Van Gogh knew so well. Cox unassumingly uses real people and costumes in an almost dream-like fashion; they exist along the edges of the film, in a sort of blur; as if we were living directly in Van Gogh's dreams and memories. What's most astounding though, is that I never knew what an incredibly gifted writer Van Gogh was. The entire film is narration of Van Gogh's words, in letters written to his brother. His passion, idealism, and frustration are articulated in ways that are so tangible ... it makes all other works about frustrated idealists seem downright silly. It took me a while to warm up to John Hurt's narration because I kept envisioning him instead of Van Gogh, but after a little while I got lost in the words just and concentrated on the feeling that Hurt was evoking. By the end I was in tears. It's the best film about an artist that I've ever seen. - - - Also, don't forget to check out the fantastic 55 minute documentary on the film's director, Paul Cox; a soul mate of Van Gogh's to be sure.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A fascinating tribute to the extraordinary artist who cut off his ear!!!, March 29, 2006

By 

Stephen Pletko "Uncle Stevie" (London, Ontario, Canada) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Vincent: The Life and Death of Vincent Van Gogh (DVD)

+++++

Here's what I know about artist Vincent Van Gogh (1853 to 1890): (1) He only sold one painting in his lifetime (ironic since one of his paintings in modern times sold for 40 million dollars) (2) he sliced off part of his ear in a fit of madness.

This documentary reveals that there was much, much more to this man. I say documentary but this is not your ordinary run-of-the-mill documentary that was written and directed by acclaimed filmmaker Paul Cox.

Beware! This is not a biography of Van Gogh but a look into his psyche during the last eighteen years of his life.

This documentary consists of British actor John Hurt reading from selected letters Van Gough wrote mostly to his younger brother (named Theodore or "Theo"). These letters date from 1872 to 1890. Cox has thus found an effective and unique way to tell Van Gogh's story even though it's somewhat repetitive to listen to Hurt's voice for an hour and a half. (I must admit though, Hurt's voice is interesting and distinctive.)

I learned what an incredibly gifted writer Van Gogh was. These letters reveal his passion, idealism, and frustration. Here is a sentence from one of his letters that I feel accurately and succinctly sums up his life:

"It is basically true that a painter is a man who is too absorbed in what his eyes see and is not sufficiently master of the rest of his life."

On screen, we see a collection of imagery (sometimes random) that relates (sometimes vaguely) to the themes in the letters, interspersed with a few drawings and paintings of Van Gogh's famous works. Occasionally music accompanies the images, some of it classical.

Overall, this documentary helps the viewer better understand not only Van Gogh's "life and death" but also his passion for painting.

The DVD itself is perfect in picture and sound quality. There are a few extras, the most important, in my opinion, being a brief written biography of Van Gogh. For Paul Cox fans there is also a 55-minute featurette entitled "A Journey with Paul Cox."

Finally, here is a sentence from the above written biography that sums up Van Gough's greatness as an artist:

"Vincent Van Gogh's direct brushstrokes, radiant colors, and passionate approach to his subjects made him one of the greatest artists of the last hundred years."

In conclusion, this is an unusual and unusually absorbing work with an original vision. What you would expect when learning about a most original artist!!

(1987; 95 min; 12 scenes; full screen)

+++++