The Color of Evening

Solid acting from the main role players keep this boat afloat, which could otherwise have been dragged under by the slow pace and the cloyingly sentimental soundtrack. Ellen Burstyn lights up any screen (big or small), and I can imagine it must be a joy for any actor to partner her on screen. There is an effortless 'chemistry' (for lack of a better word) between her and Landau here.

The central theme here though is not romance as such, but rather ART, and the creating of art that will stand the test of time. While I'm sure that there are as many reasons for becoming an artist as there are actual artists in the world, the interested viewer here will find much to ponder about the process of creating something called a masterpiece, and what drives or inspires the artist to reach his/her full potential.

It is a bit of a pity that the film-making team here couldn't invest the same amount of love into their endeavours, as the artists who truly care about their work - like Max Loeb, the protagonist of this film. I rate this film 7/10 due to good, respectful treatment of the film's main theme, but not any higher due to a somewhat mediocre "delivering" of the film's message.

Max (Martin Landau), an aging classically trained artist, has been trying to paint the perfect portrait for 40 years, but has always failed because he cannot capture in his own work what he saw in another. He rents his lifelong friend Kate's (Ellen Burstyn) garage as an apartment/studio, gives art lessons to an eager young artist and tries in vain to sell his work at the local gallery. Max has never married, and there is a part of him that would like to recapture his youth. He finds a lovely young woman (Ione Skye) to pose for him, and while he thinks he's found his inspiration, he is left unsatisfied when the picture is completed. When Kate's male admirer commissions Max to paint a portrait of Kate, Max slooooooowly begins to realize what inspired the artist who painted the portrait he so admired 40 years earlier.

Despite the low rating my fellow IMDb users gave this film, I rather enjoyed it. The pace is very slow, but if you focus on the central story between Max and Kate, I think you'll find it touching. The peripheral stories involving the young model and the art student are secondary. Although I've never particularly cared for Martin Landau's work, I found him perfectly tolerable here. Ellen Burstyn has never disappointed me with a performance and there is always something in her eyes that touches my soul. She's one of the best, and a good reason to watch almost any movie.