Le Songe de la lumière

This is one of the two simple films about art that made deep impact on me since their releases even after all these years.

Victor Erice's "The Quince Tree Sun" is probably the most boring film you'll ever watch, but just as the artist finds it impossible to capture the shifting sunlight, we realize it is no longer important to finish a piece of painting, if at all it is possible, as art is in the process not the result. We consciously experience the passing of time while watching the film! Brilliant.

Patricia Rozema's "I've Heard the Mermaids Singing" deals with the subjectivity of art which is always relevant in any context. The master's childish art is readily being celebrated and consumed like fast food while the amateur's masterpiece is undiscovered but remain sacred. It reminds us to keep true art away from the corruption of consumerism.

Both films allow art to be taken to a different level, beyond the reaches of physicality and commercialism.

Victor Erice made three films in his life. His first, The Spirit of the Beehive, is considered among the most important Spanish film in the last fourty years, his second, El Sur, is coming close to it, and his third, this film, is equally impressive. The film is following a painter who is trying to paint a tree. The great thing about the film is that you see the artist's struggle trying to capture the image of that tree and transform it into ART. If you like painting, if you think you will become an artist, if you ever saw movie's like ALain Resnais 'Van Gogh', or Derek Jarman's 'Carrevagio', go and see this brilliant film.

El sol de membrillo is a documentary that looks like a movie,a documentary shot like a movie.El sol de membrillo tells the story of a painting that was never finished,tells the story of what is going on in this painter's mind,tells the story of what is going on in every painter's,every artist's in general head,who is obsessed with Beauty and accuracy.It's a relaxing (in a good way) film that in spite of its rather long running time (almost two and a half hours)is not at least boring.That calmness derives from the director himself who looks like a never-angry ever-happy (not in the silly way) man who has a concrete philosophy on life and much thought in his background.That's all I can tell about this man who made an introduction to and a presentation of this work of his before the screening begun.Do not skip this movie, it can change the way you see things.

This is a gem of a movie and much better than the few reviews I've read. I was prepared for some semi-documentary about the techniques of painting. What I saw was a film filled with warmth, humor, love, and a deep appreciation of nature and the mysterious beauty of the world. I don't think I'll ever be able to look at a tree or a piece of fruit (or anything in nature for that matter) in quite the same way. This film put me in touch with the things that are truly meaningful in life, somewhat akin to Wim Wenders film `Wings of Desire'. It is simple, yet glowing and sensual, filled with gorgeous cinematography and beautiful music. One of the best films I've ever seen.

As other viewers have stated this is a MUST SEE for directors, writers, editors. So much done with so little makes this a perfect example of how a good movie is something which cannot be expressed in a song or in a book or in a painting. This story can only be expressed as a movie. You may never watch it again which is fine, you only need to watch it once. You don't even have to like it but it is a great asset to any aspiring film-maker. It will widen your understanding of what is unique to a film and what film has inherently which no other art-form has. A bonus is that it gives you a nice example of how a full feature length movie can be made with a tiny budget and one location.