Customer Reviews

Vincent Van Gogh - A Dutchman

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I got this DVD in anticipation of an upcoming trip to the Netherlands, and was sorely disappointed. The title - 'A Dutchman' - was misleading, as it mentioned only in passing Van Gogh's nationality, instead focusing on his life in France. Most of the documentary consisted of a very bored-looking Christopher Reeve narrating, reading from a teleprompter or cue cards placed about knee-height. You can even see him stifling a burp at one point, and a jump cut in narration was, unfortunately, the highlight of the production (along with the menu screen). Halfway into the documentary, we'd only seen about half a dozen paintings; the rest was Chris.

Even though it's clear that this documentary is aimed at middle-school students, it is unique in that it makes a great artist out to be very dull and uninspiring. I've taken art classes in college and slide presentations at eight a.m. were more gripping.

Additional caveat: It's obvious this was sloppily transferred from the VHS original. Not only is the documentary poorly done, it looks terrible too.

It's pauperishly produced, but, as art documentaries go, I've seen worse. A good quick introduction to Van Gogh, surprisingly comprehensive for a mere 25 minutes of film.

I was struck by the sad irony of seeing the youthful Reeves speak of the doom awaiting Vincent.