What it's about:
In the world’s first fully oil painted feature film, the artwork of Vincent van Gogh is brought to life in an exploration of the complicated life and controversial death of one of history’s most celebrated artists. More than six years in the making, with the help of 125 specially-trained painters, this is a uniquely animated film composed of 65 000 painted frames. Drawn from meticulous research and inspired by van Gogh’s masterpieces, subjects, and 800 personal letters, it encapsulates the world of van Gogh in a unique cinematic experience.
What the critics thought:
Visually, it's spectacular. Conceptually, it's jaw-dropping to simply considering the effort that went into this. The story, however, doesn't always hold its own. - Stephanie Merry, Washington PostEleanor Tomlinson and Aidan Turner shine through with a realism that few artists - and certainly not van Gogh - could ever hope to capture. - Matthew Bond, The Mail on Sunday (UK)
Framed as a kind of detective story, the film seems rather pedestrian, ambling from one talking head to the next, but the portrait of the driven, eccentric wastrel at its centre is indelibly drawn. - Tom Shone, Sunday Times (UK)
Here is an oddity: intriguing and yet weirdly exasperating, like a sentimental tribute, or a one-joke epic, or a monomaniacal act of stylistic pedantry. - Peter Bradshaw, Guardian
A triumph of painstaking technical prowess and stunning visuals over storytelling and dialogue. See it for its nuanced take on a huge cultural figure and to applaud its astounding audacity. - Ian Freer, Empire Magazine