Com Amor, Van Gogh

This is one-of-a-kind movie and definitely a must for lovers of Van Gogh. I studied art, therefore I was very interested in seeing how they managed to produce new paintings using his technique. The result is visually striking. You can actually experience some of Van Gogh's paintings coming to life, which is in itself pretty amazing.

However, a movie must also have a strong script, a good story to go with the visual. The plot is about Armand Roulin, son of Joseph Roulin - two frequent subjects of Van Gogh's portraits. In fact, the whole Roulin family, inclusive of mum Augustine and her other two children were painted several times by Van Gogh, while in Arles.

Joseph was Van Gogh's postman and in the movie he entrusts Armand to deliver his last letter to brother Theo. Vincent and Theo's letters were published at the beginning of the last century, shedding light on their affectionate relationship, but not about Vincent's demise.

Therefore, Armand sets out to investigate Vincent's last days. The tone is somber and melancholic, somehow clashing with the beautiful visuals. Van Gogh comes across as an enigmatic man who could be sweet and full joy one moment and despondent the next - maybe suffering from bi-polar disorder, but we'll never know.

The plot develops a bit slowly in the end we do not know much more of what we knew at the beginning, but for sure we can retain the memory of this fantastic pictorial voyage.

Most of the focus will be on its incredibly innovative visuals, the entire film is animated oil paintings. The paintings are all in Van Gogh's style are they are a beautiful backdrop that brings incredible life to the film in a way that no other style possible could.

But there is much more to Loving Vincent than the art, it is a riveting story that dives into who Vincent Van Gogh was as a man and the mystery surrounding his death. It unfolds in the same manner as "Citizen Kane" with the posthumous exploration into a person through talking to the people who knew him. It is engrossing with excellent voice work and incredibly smooth animation and movement.

I saw the film at the Tellride Film Festival and was blown away. I knew that the film would be gorgeous, but the trailer doesn't do the projected feature justice. The oil paintings are mesmerizing on their own, but combined they create a transfixing animation that is completely unique and never gets tiring. The film is worth seeing, and will be forever remembered, for these visuals by themselves. Its only stumble comes from a script that has difficulty in reaching its conclusion, and the use of formulated black-and-white flashbacks to show Vincent's life leave something to be desired (especially when considering the film's other creative achievements.) Even so, the film is an immense triumph that every human being with eyes will love.

As a Van Gogh fan, I was waiting for so long to see this movie. I thought it would be about his life but it came out to be something different. A postman was asking his son, Armand, to deliver the last letter of Van Gogh written to his brother, Theo. As first I thought it was a piece of the ending such as a flashforward and the story would recommence but it didn't. During the movie I discovered how the death of Van Gogh is as exciting as his life. Although I knew how unfortunate his life was, I didn't know the real reason behind his suicide. We were told he was just a crazy artist. I felt utterly sad to learn that he cared much about his brother and vice versa. The movie, at the beginning, comes very strange as it was taken using paintings of his own impressionist style. However the story comes attractive and you find yourself questioning his death. I would like to congratulate all the artists who contributed to this movie. Great piece of art and nice ending song!

It's my first review for a movie, and I'll keep it short. The movie is heart warming, exquisitely done and, if you stay for the ending soundtrack, you will be treated to a wonderful song which summarizes the movie through music. His story is dramatic and a very good reminder of how we, as humans, don't know how to appreciate valuable people during their lifetime. This movie will enrich your life.