Gaugin-Voyage de Tahiti

Bitter sweet inspiration about a man who truly struggled for his art.

I've been a fan of Vincent Cassell for years and he is the only reason why I wanted to see this movie when I saw the poster in a near by theater. Cassell plays Paul Gauguin, an artist who was willing to give up everything: his wife, his 5 children, all to travel down to Tahiti in hopes that the journey would make him a better artist. While down there he stars a romance with a woman who becomes his muse.

Cassell, himself was so good in the movie. It was a mixed bag of emotions as Cassell portrays a very selfish man who give up way too much to become a starving artist holding on to the dream that he would find pure inspiration. It was indeed a struggle, but Cassell's performance also show a man who was focus on living his best life.

Another great yet low key performance was done by Tuheï Adams who plays Tehura, the muse who became the focus of many of Gauguin's painting. I felt the two of them together had enough chemistry to keep the movie going.

Overall, I went to see this movie for Vincent Cassell and I'm very stratified with his performance enough to be interested in the man he portrayed (ignoring how a movie set in the late 1800s is painting a clear picture of what Gentrification looks like today.) Plus Tuhei Adams was a pleasant bonus and I hope to see more of her.

"Gauguin: Voyage to Tahiti" is a Biography - Drama movie in which we watch Paul Gauguin leaving from Paris in 1891 to go to Tahiti leaving behind his wife and his five children. He finds happiness in a young native girl and he continues his life.

I liked this movie because it was simple but not boring and followed the life of Paul Gauguin and it is based on true events. The interpretation of Vincent Cassel who played as Paul Gauguin was very good and he did his best to adapt on this role. Another interpretation that has to be mentioned was Tuheï Adams who played as Tehura. In conclusion, I have to say that "Gauguin: Voyage to Tahiti" is not a masterpiece and many things could be better and be presented with a little bit more information such as Paul Gauguin's life in Paris and how he was known there. This could help us understand his choices and his personality even better.

I thought this film, directed by Edouard Deluc, had its moments but with its very methodical pacing and depressive tone can be a difficult watch. Vincent Cassel gives a fine performance as the acclaimed artist Paul Gauguin, who unable to sell his paintings in France, leaves his family in Paris to find inspiration for his work on the island of Tahiti.

There he meets the Tahitian beauty Tehura (Tuhei Adams), who, while living together, begins to pose for Gauguin's paintings and sketches. However, despite the lush atmospherics of it all, Gauguin finds himself still impoverished, in failing health, and becoming more and possessive and selfish when it comes to young Tehura. The envisioned idyllic life is slipping away.

Overall, despite the powerful performances from Cassel and the debut of Adams, the movie to me just became mostly a slog, although, at times, it seems to come together nicely, but those moments are too few and far between. Thus, just a fair rating for me.

Gauguin: Voyage to Tahiti

Gauguin: Voyage to Tahiti is aptly titled.

It's a pity the pace slowed.

Gauguin: Voyage to Tahiti is not a particularly bold film. Nevertheless, it is a film about a very bold person who escapes his bohemian life and introduces a bit of bohemia in the extremely relaxed nation of Tahiti.

I am unsure about the true nature Gauguin. The first part of the film seeks to present him as a man that was abandoned by his wife and family before their planned voyage to Tahiti. In return, he abandons them and lives a life of mild debauchery in a hut by the beach in Tahiti. I presumed the film was a little easy on Gauguin here; he seems to hit the ground running when he arrives and soon forgets his rather laborious family.

The film then obeys a common narrative of a man dealing with a midlife crisis by throwing himself into an affair with young girl - Tehura (a tribal Tahitian offering).

While the script may disappoint; the casting, performances and cinematography are all superb.

Gauguin might be selfish and possessive, but he certainly has conviction. This is certainly something Vincent brought to the screen superbly.

This film touches on a few similar themes to Jane Campions excellent film 'The Piano'. You could almost consider this film to be The Piano through a male lens.

It's a pity the pace of the film slowed. I couldn't help but feel that there is a better film that could have been made here. Perhaps more of his history in Paris would have created a better juxtaposition on what Gaugin left?

However, Gauguin threw himself into a new life and a new art. This above anything else is the most enticing thing about the film. It may inspire.

Some good moments in this story of Paul Gauguin and his Tahitian period, emphasizing his relationship with Tehura, but mostly I found the film overly self-indulgent, and narcissistic on the part of the film creators. I am a bit critical on the subject since Gauguin is my favorite Impressionist, more brilliant in my mind than Vincent. If it had been tighter, with less stream of consciousness and more emphasis on the narrative it would have been more effective. Paul Gauguin has been played by George Sanders (as "Strickland" in Maugham's The Moon and Sixpence) Anthony Quinn, David Carradine, and now Vincent Cassel. All good in their way, each capturing elements of the artist's personality. Surprisingly, of all the actors to play Gauguin David Carradine gives the best performance. Find it if you can in another so-so try at capturing this story, Gauguin the Savage.