At Eternity's Gate

Z

Tumbles into pretentious affectation at times. The hand held and constant POV shots work for the narrative quite well. Dafoe is just note perfect, he makes dialogue and visual ideas flow that otherwise would not. Schnabel's camera dances with Dafoe in his agonies and his ecstasies. Schnabel and his artistic collaborators create a sincere ode to the most hallucinatory of artists. Often immensely visually pleasing.

HenriqueA

Not a fan of Schnabel's style or his cinematography. The message that his films transmit to me is that he feels like he's a genius. But that's beside the point. Van Gogh's story is endlessly alluring and Dafoe is fantastic, as is his supporting cast (Friend, Isaac, Mikkelsen, Seigner, Consigny and Almaric) that have little to do, but do it so well. So in spite of himself, Schnabel managed to not fuck this up. Good.

josé neves

Above, the excerpt from a review in Reverse Shot, states "For the first time a director has tried to help cinegoers share van Gogh's gaze." Realy? And I thought i saw Minnelli's "Lust for Life". But no, after all it's this mixture of effects with hysterical informality that ultimately reconstructs the painter's gaze - not the pictorial, but the supposedly disturbed, clinically ill. As bad as this concept.

Jérémy Poirier

Julian Schnabel's take on Van Gogh's final days is a mesmerizing and fittingly rough around the edges unusual biopic. In fact it is more of a film about the essence of Van Gogh, not a 100% fact based biopic. It is very experimental in its use of that gorgeous camerawork and the sound mixing and it fits with the artist's point of view. And Willem Dafoe gives some of the best work he's ever done.

Sean Patrick Stevens

I admired the film's avant gardism as a way to transcend the horrid biopic genre even when it became excessive (wouldn't Van Gogh approve?) and even potentially ridiculous scenes of "Van Gogh as hippie" ultimately feel authentic thanks to the committed performance of Dafoe. The fact that a nearly plotless film that we know the ending to could be this emotionally engrossing reveals why we go to the movies.

msmichel

Schnabel's take on Van Gogh's final days in Arles is somewhat experimental, artistic yet still moving. Willem Dafoe despite being about twenty years too old for the part excels here as the conflicted artist well supported by a well cast ensemble. The camerawork despite being often hand held is quite exquisite with painterly frames throughout echoing Van Gogh's take on nature. Not for all tastes but rewarding.

Daniel Roque

Imagine Van Gogh's bromance with Gauguin directed by Terrence Malick. Willem Dafoe has the right amount of craziness, gingerness and creepiness to brought this painter back to life.

Jugu Abraham

The most remarkable facet of the film is Jean-Claude Carriere's co-written script that includes van Gogh's (Willem Dafoe) interaction with the priest (Mads Mikkelsen) at the asylum. For that sequence alone, the film is worth your time. A film where van Gogh talks in English to Gauguin, to French villagers in French and his own brother Theo in English, challenges your ability to believe what you are watching.