Review of Loving Vincent (2017) by Frame R — 03 Apr 2018

LOVING VINCENT.

The film is a gimmick of Linklater proportions, it's a feat as the first oil frame-by-frame painted movie. It's also a visually stunning film, expressive in its use of color and even "lighting", maintaining a tight relationship to the artist's technique and mood. Just like a Van Gogh, its details are less important than the overall expression, the latter relying almost uniquely on the former. Yet, a movie's greatness can't rest solely upon novelty, because if that was the case, The Jazz Singer and Avatar would be great films. In fact, seldom does first get to be best when you look back to the cinematic history. So, although Loving Vincent is certainly a courageous endeavour, we mustn't forget that it is highly flawed, as most experiments are when you test them for the first time. It's a highly frustrating movie, both for its script consisting of 100% of exposition and for its structure. For example, something bugged me in the first part of the film in which a flashback does not appear in black and white for no apparent reason. I was fortunate enough to get the directors in the room to get my question asked but their answer did not justify its purpose at all. It is well regarded that there's strength in repetition so in order to make a cohesive point sometimes, when the execution wasn't perfect at first try, you have to hit the nail once again. The contrary is also true, as the movie utilizes the flashback mechanism so many times to point of it becomes wearisome, when a flashback seems almost gratuitous. When you are constantly alternating between present and past, it gives both insufficient importance, in a cycle of neglect. That was the main force of my frustration, as the movie kept repeating a part of film grammar that is strongest when used scarcely (or executed to perfection like in Citizen Kane). Ultimately, the movie's greatest flaw consists on avoiding what Van Gogh was filled to the brim with: the will to dare and to cut off a ear.