At Eternity’s Gate
In Julian Schnabel’s entrancing portrait of Vincent van Gogh, Willem Dafoe gives a masterful performance as the great Dutch painter
Fat daubs of oil paint are applied to a canvas, a field of decaying sunflowers is drenched in golden light and, in a yellow room in a yellow house, a Dutch painter is trying to buy love for 50 centimes. So begins the world seen through the eyes of Vincent van Gogh in Julian Schnabel’s entrancing portrait exploring the life of one of the world’s most famous artists.
Unlike Kirk Douglas, Tim Roth or Jacques Dutronc’s interpretations of the great post-impressionist painter, Willem Dafoe's take, with his sun-cracked skin and burnt sienna hair, escapes the clunking clichés of most artist biopics – it's a masterful performance.
Schnabel isn’t wrapped up in recording historical details. Instead, the director wants us to feel the ebb and flow of what it was like to be Van Gogh. Across a couple of hours, we are allowed to engage in the emotional intensity of the artist’s life – both the manic highs and the pitiful lows. It’s a rapturous and honest portrait of a rare and brilliant life.
Released 29 Mar by Curzon; certificate 12A