At Eternity's Gate
2018
***
Director: Julian Schnabel
Cast: Willem Dafoe, Rupert Friend, Oscar Isaac, Mads Mikkelsen, Mathieu Amalric, Emmanuelle Seigner, Niels Arestrup, Vincent Perez, Stella Schnabel, Amira Casar
In his final years, the Dutch painter Vincent van Gogh (1853-1890) is a struggling artist living in Arles and Auvers-sur-Oise, and battling with his declining mental health. Julian Schnabel does not deliver a conventional biographical drama, but rather a more focused portrayal of a life as an artist. The central question posed to the protagonist is Why do you paint? Although this is a promising approach, the film never becomes truly compelling. It is marked by Benoît Delhomme's restless, shaky POV camerawork and Tatiana Lisovskaya's ever-present piano score. The screenplay draws on van Gogh’s letters, particularly those exchanged with his brother Theo. Willem Dafoe, who is admittedly about 25 years too old for the part, nonetheless delivers a strong performance.
