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Released By: Olive Films
Released On: March 24, 2015.
Director: Robert Altman
Cast: Tim Roth, Paul Rhys
Year: 1990
The Film:
To watch the trailer for Robert Altman's 1990 film Vincent and Theo, you might be under the impression that Vincent Van Gogh and his brother had exciting lives, filled with women, drink, frantic painting sessions, fisticuffs, guns, and straight razors. And who knows, that may have been the case. But I can tell you for certain, if that's what you're looking for in the actual film, you'll probably come away more than a little disappointed.
The film starts off in The Hague, where Vincent Van Gogh is living in squalor, in a tiny one-room dwelling riddled with his sketches. Appearing to have no motivation to do anything other than focus on his artwork, lazing, and drinking, the source of his income becomes apparent with the arrival of his brother Theo, an aspiring art dealer from the city. Despite his inability to sell any of Vincent's work, Theo believes in his brother, placing himself near poverty by sending most of his wages to his older brother. The sight of Theo, dressed to the nines while Vincent lounges in bed with his bad teeth is the first we see of Altman's method of showing the extreme contrast between the brothers, a technique he uses throughout the film.
A short term at art school ends when Vincent decides that he would rather learn from other artists than in an institutional setting, and he instead stays in his newly acquired scummy apartment, paying a lady of the evening to model for him. While he is committed only to the art, the prostitute has other ideas and wants to split, so Vincent convinces her to move in with him...with her daughter...so that she will continue to model for him.
While Vincent is hanging out with his prostitute and her daughter and painting in drab settings, Theo is moving up in the world; the gallery he's working for is appointing him to head another gallery, in which he'll have a lot more clout in pushing paintings, including Vincent's work. He's doing a little better with the ladies than his brother as well, with a lineup of high-class women who are very interested in moving in with the sophisticated bachelor; despite his little issue with syphilis. When he eventually settles on a girl that he likes, he proposes, while his brother is getting belligerent drunk and threatening to murder his friends, culminating in the removal of his own ear(lobe) with a straight razor. A visit to his eerily decorated apartment convinces Theo that Vincent may need some help of the professional kind, and he has his brother institutionalized; but mental health treatment at the time consisted of getting lots of rests and spending time in the bath.
As Vincent's work becomes more intense with his growing madness, Theo's sanity is also threatened with his new marriage; a nagging wife, a constantly crying baby, his inability to sell his brother's work...and his syphilis. Two brothers divided by such vastly different lifestyles are brought to the same level of desperation for the film's conclusion, which really shouldn't be a surprise to anyone.
Vincent and Theo is not a badly-made movie, by any stretch. The locations used closely mirror the locations where the actual events took place, and particular attention is paid to illuminating the difference in social standing between the brothers Van Gogh. It is largely factual, though there are a few liberties taken in the name of telling the story. The performances are wonderful, with Paul Rhys outshining Tim Roth's main character of Vincent...but Roth is no slouch either, despite the questionable wording of some of the dialogue. Not content to just show Van Gogh creating his masterworks throughout the film, Altman has gone the more creative and difficult route, which is a brave decision.
The problem with Vincent and Theo is that it's...boring. The story isn't particularly engaging, and the events that happen in the film are lackluster and don't provoke any kind of reaction from the viewer. It should be noted that this is not the 197 minute cut that was broadcast as a miniseries for the BBC; this version comes in almost an hour shy. Maybe the longer version helps the pacing more, I can't say. What I can say is that in this incarnation, Vincent and Theo is a chore to get through, and seems much longer than the running time suggests.
Video/Audio/Extras:
Olive Films brings Vincent and Theo to Blu-ray in a 1.78:1 transfer that looks great, allowing Altman's attention to detail (including the different locations) to take full advantage of the format. Blacks are good, the colour dynamic between Vincent's sequences and Theo's allows the picture to pop when necessary, and there are no instances of artifacting to be found.
The DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 track is adequate for the film, as it's largely dialogue-driven. It does drop to some intentionally low volumes at points, and here is where my one issue with Olive's releases presents itself; this disc, like the majority of their titles I've reviewed, contains no subtitles. Be prepared to adjust the volume significantly during quieter passages to catch murmured dialogue.
A trailer is also included.
The Final Word:
Vincent and Theo is a finely-made film by a pretty talented director, but the subject matter and the delivery make it a chore to sit through.
Click on the images below for full sized Blu-ray screen caps!
