Painted with Words

2010

Biography / Documentary

3
IMDb Rating 7.9/10 10 2807 2.8K

vincent van gogh

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Plot summary

A drama-documentary presented by Alan Yentob, with Benedict Cumberbatch in the lead role. Every word spoken by the actors in this film is sourced from the letters that Van Gogh sent to his younger brother Theo, and of those around him. What emerges is a complex portrait of a sophisticated, civilised and yet tormented man.

Director

Andrew Hutton Photo
Andrew Hutton

Top cast

Benedict Cumberbatch Photo
Benedict Cumberbatch as Vincent Van Gogh
Aidan McArdle Photo
Aidan McArdle as Paul Gauguin
Daniel Weyman Photo
Daniel Weyman as Anthon Van Rappard
Jamie Parker Photo
Jamie Parker as Theo Van Gogh
480p.DVD
463.29 MB
700*394
English 2.0
NR
Subtitles
25 fps
12 hr 52 min
Seeds 42

Movie Reviews

Reviewed by angelofvic 9 / 10

Engaging (and informative)

This 60-minute bio-pic is both engaging and informative, and quite appealing.As someone who has read Irving Stone's consummate biography of Van Gogh, "Lust for Life", I wasn't sure that I really needed what I perceived as the possible redundancy of this film. I finally watched it (on YouTube) because of Benedict Cumberbatch, arguably Britain's best young film actor.I was very very pleasantly surprised. This isn't your normal bio-pic, where scenes are invented and dialogue is fabricated and everything is only a vague approximation of history at best, and a Hollywoodized confection or melodrama at worst. Instead, the entire script of this bio-doc is taken verbatim from the letters of Vincent Van Gogh and his brother Theo, and also from those of their contemporaries. The words taken from the letters are ingeniously and engagingly acted out by each actor in their respective locales.While this might sound possibly dry, it is anything but. For one, we've got Benedict Cumberbatch. I've grown used to brilliant performances by Benedict, and this is yet another one. Vincent comes brilliantly and evocatively alive here. And I must add, to Cumberbatch's enormous credit, he never overplays Vincent -- a figure of such wild passions and a life of such melodrama that it would have been easy to slip into that.For another, the program is bookended by a prologue and epilogue pleasantly and reverently explaining the material and sources, and the drama includes appropriate narration by this same presenter when the story radically shifts time and place.Lastly, beyond the excellent performances and vivid storyline, we have the drawings, sketches, studies, and incredible paintings of Vincent himself, interpolated easily into the narrative, in exquisite high-definition shots. I've never seen Van Gogh's art presented so vividly on film -- it's a real treat.All in all, I learned a lot, even though I thought I already knew most of Van Gogh's story. And the acting, narration, and artwork were splendid. Highly recommended.
Reviewed by BeneCumb 8 / 10

Peculiar story-telling, but an outstanding performance

As you can guess I admire Benedict Cumberbatch a lot - already then when he was much less "mainstream", i.e. 5+ years ago, when he gained his fame through playing persons with psychical and/or mental shortages. Van Gogh had the latter as well, and it is still amazing to watch how BC depicts him, so pleasantly even for me without deeper knowledge of art schools and artists' relationships. It is due to his role that I gave 8 points to this film - I did not particularly like the inclusion of documentary presentation (by Alan Yento), and all other actors and their performances were not memorable. The other thing I likes was sticking to the letters and documents available, meaning strong realism and absorbing into the struggling life of (later) famous artists in the 19th century.A must-see for fans of BC, Van Gogh, and/or realistic dramas about art.
Reviewed by TheLittleSongbird 9 / 10

Really wonderful

I saw Van Gogh: Painted with Words as an admirer of Van Gogh's art and of Benedict Cumberbatch's acting skills. And I was not disappointed. It is photographed and designed in a very sumptuous manner, and Van Gogh's art shown vividly here. The music also impresses, with plenty of parts evoking emotion while never feeling obtrusive. Van Gogh: Painted with Words is a very well written programme too, the narration is both interesting and informative and presented clearly, and the story is every bit as vivid as Van Gogh's art with seldom a dull moment. The acting I can't fault either, Cumberbatch especially is superb once again. Overall, really wonderful, though part of me wished it was a tad longer. 9/10 Bethany Cox
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