Vincent Willem van Gogh (UK /ˌvæn ˈɡɒx/, US /ˌvæn ˈɡoʊ/;Dutch: [vɑŋ ˈɣɔχ] ( listen); 30 March 1853 – 29 July 1890) was a Dutch post-Impressionist painter whose work, notable for its rough beauty, emotional honesty, and bold color, had a far-reaching influence on 20th-century art. After years of painful anxiety and frequent bouts of mental illness, he died at the age of 37 from a gunshot wound, generally accepted to be self-inflicted (although no gun was ever found). His work was then known to only a handful of people and appreciated by fewer still.
Van Gogh began to draw as a child, and he continued to draw throughout the years that led up to his decision to become an artist. He did not begin painting until his late twenties, completing many of his best-known works during the last two years of his life. In just over a decade, he produced more than 2,100 artworks, consisting of 860 oil paintings and more than 1,300 watercolors, drawings, sketches and prints. His work included self portraits, landscapes, still lifes of flowers, portraits and paintings of cypresses, wheat fields and sunflowers.
Plot
As the director, the goal I set for myself in transferring the film script to the screen was never to present but rather to uncover. I employ a subjective camera throughout the entire film. The idea is to get inside Vincent's head. Everything seen and felt is from his point of view. In order to achieve this, the camera, rather than viewing the action, will always be within it. We strove to give objective expression to inner experience, i.e., to show what Vincent was thinking and feeling; to show how a memory, dream or hallucination registers in his mind: texture, sound, color, shape, tempo. The purpose is not for the audience merely to be a witness, but rather for them to live within the image and to participate psychologically in the action. Vincent's mind, from beginning to end, is always engaged. His confusion, struggle, bewilderment and desperation grow and grow. He is never totally in one place. When he is in the past he still retains some of the present and vice versa. Many scenes are dream, imaginary or hallucinatory sequences. In order to convey the intensity and obsessive quality and to maintain the subjective camera movement, all of the scenes were shot at 360 degrees with a handheld camera. From childhood on, Vincent never took anything for granted. He always marvelled at every new discovery; at all the wonders of the world. Vincent suffered constantly with terrible bouts of guilt, remorse and regret because of the burden he put on Theo and because his work never sold. Vincent came to St. Remy because he wanted to be isolated from the outside world and be in a protective environment. As long as he could discover and reveal new truths and carry on with his work he could hold the horrible disease at bay. For Vincent, inactivity was absolute torture. Painting was the only thing that protected him from the constant questions and doubts that haunted him. By going without proper sleep or food, by working himself to the point of exhaustion -- this alone helped silence the most frightening thoughts. It was vitally important to him that his work be recognized; for there to be some sense of recompense, because then he could ease the burden placed on Theo. Vincent van Gogh's three greatest fears were: suffering another attack; being incapacitated and unable to work; and failing to justify though his work all that Theo had done for him. He felt that if he couldn't work he had no reason to live, no right to take money away from Theo. The constant obsession by psychoanalysts, doctors and armchair experts to pigeonhole van Gogh's illness, to give it a specific name, to use it to explain his actions, to claim that the very quality of his personality and his genius can be attributed to a specific malady: bi-polar disease, schizophrenia, autism, tinnitus, gonorrhea, lead poisoning, ad finitum ad nauseam is utter rubbish. It's an insult to Vincent and proof that these people have absolutely no understanding of the man. Vincent was completely original both in his work and in his illness. Certainly he had severe emotional problems and no doubt they were exacerbated by malnutrition and traumatic experiences - the Borinage, etc. that made him more vulnerable - but ultimately he was defeated by an immense sensitivity and an overwhelming empathic nature that was unable to cope with the reality of the world and the nature of most people. In spite of what most think, Vincent was a realist both in his life and his work, but his reality was light years beyond everyday reality and therein lay his genius. He indeed saw life as it was but was never able to come to terms with it. Most realists become cynics, but Vincent was totally incapable of this. When an artist becomes a cynic, he also become a hack and is no longer capable of producing heartfelt work. Technical virtuosity may remain, but the "soul" of the work is lost. Vincent never lost either. By the world's standard of normalcy, then and now, Vincent was not an idealist but quixotic. However, the "world's standard of normalcy, then and now," is by definition pedestrian, mediocre, compliant, herdish, pragmatic, accommodating and compromising. Vincent was extremely difficult to deal with. If he saw some-thing unjust or wrong, he felt compelled to attack it. It was always love or hate and this created many enemies. Even Theo found him impossible to live with. All Vincent thought about, all he cared about was the work. Nevertheless, Theo, like Roulin the postman and Vincent's teacher in Amsterdam, Mendes da Costa, always thought that Vincent was a great and unique individual. These were the only three friends Vincent ever had, the only people who under-stood and loved him for what and who he was. But they were also unique and wonderful people, atypical from the average person. Many people today who adulate Vincent make him into a Christ-like martyr. He was neither and would have detested the notion. He is depicted as the ultimate "communal" artist. This is nonsense. He was in fact the ultimate "individualist" who was never able to work well with others, or to be bound by any sort of cooperative rules. His desire to work with others came from loneliness more than anything else. Another myth is that he sacrificed his life (again, the martyr syndrome) for humanity. No. He gave his life to his work. He did indeed have an obsessive desire to educate and inspire people. But he strove to do so through his work, which superseded everything else. The most significant and revelatory things about van Gogh are not that he cut off his earlobe or that he suffered attacks of madness or that he committed suicide, but rather that he lived life to the fullest, realized his artistic potential as much as humanly possible, fought magnificently against the attacks and all forms of adversity, never willingly giving in to them. Most important, he created a superb body of work that will live as long as the human race survives. The theme of his life, and the theme of my film The Eyes of Van Gogh, is Vincent's quest to achieve immortality through his work.
Keywords: arles, artist, brother-brother-relationship, character-name-in-title, coal-miner, death, dream, father-son-relationship, film-about-artist, graveyard
Paul Gauguin: The essence of a work lies precisely in what is not expressed. It has no material being.
Vincent van Gogh: Without substance there is no art.
Vincent van Gogh: A painting must have heart, soul, passion. Without that it's worthless.
Vincent van Gogh: I must finish my work.
Vincent van Gogh: [Vincent arguing with his brother Theo, who is an art dealer] The people who run this field, they're the worst enemies of art. They encourage the worst, the most barbaric taste. But you - - my God, you could do something about it.
Vincent van Gogh: Someday I must be able to paint portraits that - - a hundred years from now they will appear like apparitions to the people seeing them. They would be like ghosts - - the living spirits of the dead. They'd still be striving, growling, eternal life.
Vincent van Gogh: [Vincent rhapsodizes to Gauguin on his vision for the Studio of the South] We could leave behind a body of work that would last forever. We could educate the people. We could change the world.
Vincent van Gogh: Just think, Paul, this could be the beginning of a whole new era, a new dawn in art: The Studio of the South.
Vincent van Gogh: Someday I must be able to do a figure in just a few strokes. Imagine. In a few strokes, a man, a woman, a child with the head, body, and legs - - all in the right proportion.
Paul Gauguin: Painting, Vincent, is a whore. You can make beautiful love to it. You can titillate and suck and nurture every erogenous area. You can bring it to orgasm, hour after hours. And if you're lucky, really lucky, you'll get a little kiss in return.
Plot
Set in 1872, the story focuses on Passepartout, a Chinese thief who steals a valuable jade Buddha and then seeks refuge in the traveling companionship of an eccentric London inventor and adventurer, Phileas Fogg, who has taken on a bet with members of his gentlemen's club that he can make it around the world in a mere 80 days, using a variety of means of transportation, like boats, trains, balloons, elephants, etc. Along the way, Passepartout uses his amazing martial arts abilities to defend Fogg from the many dangers they face.. One major threat to their adventure is a detective that's following them. Why? Just as Fogg and Passeportout left London, a major bank was robbed, with Fogg suspected of using the "around the world" trip as an excuse to escape.. Their path from London and back includes stops in Paris, Turkey, India, China and USA...
Keywords: 1870s, 19th-century, action-hero, around-the-world, around-the-world-in-80-days, asian-man, asian-woman, assassin, aviation, bank-robbery
The race begins: June 16.
Let your imagination soar.
[Passepartout is fighting while the caged Phileas coaches him]::Phileas Fogg: Watch out to the right! [Passepartout misses] No, my right. [Passepartout is hit]::Passepartout: Stop helping me!
[Monique has just knocked out General Fang with a martial arts strike]::Passepartout: [astonished] She must be the eleventh tiger!::Monique La Roche: [curls fingers into claws] Meow.
Lord Kelvin: Well done, Salisbury! I shall name a beef-based entrée after you in your honor.
Steamer Captain: You had me at the nipples.
Phileas Fogg: Here comes Mr. Grumpy... and the Leather-ettes.
Monique La Roche: Where's your proof?::Lord Kelvin: This is the Royal Academy of Science! We don't have to prove anything!
Lord Kelvin: What's this obstruction blocking my jade reserves? This will certainly have to be demolished.::Lord Salisbury: But that is the Great Wall of China sir!::Lord Kelvin: ...It's not that great.
Phileas Fogg: I am a British Citizen, I have nothing to fear! [Gunshot goes off in background]... except bullets.
Lord Kelvin: What's the point in hiring a corrupt inspector when he can't even abuse the Law properly?
Phileas Fogg: This is what happens when you leave home. You meet... people.
Plot
Full Moon Fables is a compelling collision of art with reality. The synthesis of stories result in many possibilities of a singular message: What am I here for? Participants in each personal fable reshape the story as each struggles to find meaning in their everyday existence. From an artist encountering the ghost of Vincent Van Gogh to a temp with her first job in a movie studio looking for meaning. We simply can't live without giving things in our life a purpose.
Plot
A magic potion returns artist Vincent Van Gogh back to life and lands him in the center of the Rose Bowl Parade in this oddball comedy. Of course, no one believes who he is and he is startled to discover his popularity after the passage of time. This sets him off on a crusade to steal his paintings back from collectors and sets a detective on his trail. Along the way, he makes friends with an ambulance chasing attorney and a young artist, who gradually begin to believe his claims of identity.
Keywords: art, art-collector, art-theft, artist, death, detective, female-detective, independent-film, lawyer, magic-potion
A century is a long time to wait for your dreams to come true.
Plot
In late spring, 1890, Vincent moves to Auvers-sur-Oise, near Paris, under the care of Dr. Gachet, living in a humble inn. Fewer than 70 days later, Vincent dies from a self-inflicted gunshot wound. We see Vincent at work, painting landscapes and portraits. His brother Theo, wife Johanna, and their baby visit Auvers. Vincent is playful and charming, engaging the attentions of Gachet's daughter Marguerite (who's half Vincent's age), a young maid at the inn, Cathy a Parisian prostitute, and Johanna. Shortly before his death, Vincent visits Paris, quarrels with Theo, disparages his own art and accomplishments, dances at a brothel, and is warm then cold toward Marguerite.
Keywords: absinthe, accordion, accordion-player, adultery, allopathy, arles, art-collector, art-critic, art-dealer, artist
Plot
Vincent Van Gogh is the archetypical tortured artistic genius. His obsession with painting, combined with mental illness, propels him through an unhappy life full of failures and unrewarding relationships. He fails at being a preacher to coal miners. He fails in his relationships with women. He earns some respect among his fellow painters, especially Paul Gauguin, but he does not get along with them. He only manages to sell one painting in his lifetime. The one constant good in his life is his brother Theo, who is unwavering in his moral and financial support.
Keywords: 1880s, 19th-century, absinthe, arles, art, art-masterpiece, art-patronage, artist, auvers-sur-oise-france, based-on-novel
THE MOST REVEALING LIFE-INSPIRED STORY EVER FILMED! (original print ad - all caps)
The best-seller comes to the screen...the drama of a man who lived with insatiable passion.
He had a lust for life. Sometimes he was brutal, sometimes delicate---always he lived with insatiable passion!
Paul Gauguin: With all your talk of emotion, all I see when I look at your work is just that you paint too fast!::Vincent Van Gogh: You look too fast!
Paul Gauguin: I like 'em fat and vicious and not too smart. Nothing spiritual either. To have to say 'I love you' would break my teeth. I don't want to be loved.
Vincent Van Gogh: If I'm to be anything as a painter I've got to break through that iron wall between what I feel and what I express. my best chance of doing it is here, where my roots are... the people I know, the earth I know.
Paul Gauguin: If it's one thing I despise, it's emotionalism in painting.
Vincent Van Gogh: I tried to show a place where a man can ruin himself, go mad... commit a crime.