Lust for Life (1956)

User Rating:

7.3/10   

Director:

Vincente Minnelli

Writers:

Irving Stone (novel)
Norman Corwin (screenplay)

Release Date:

26 December 1956 (Sweden)

Genre:

Biography | Drama

Tagline:

The best-seller comes to the screen...the drama of a man who lived with insatiable passion.

Plot:

The life of brilliant but tortured artist Vincent van Gogh.

Plot Keywords:

Vincent Van Gogh | Painting | Paul Gauguin | Obsession | Painter

Awards:

Won Oscar. Another 2 wins & 6 nominations

Cast

Kirk Douglas	...	Vincent Van Gogh
Anthony Quinn	...	Paul Gauguin
James Donald	...	Theo Van Gogh
Pamela Brown	...	Christine
Everett Sloane	...	Dr. Gachet
Niall MacGinnis	...	Roulin
Noel Purcell	...	Anton Mauve
Henry Daniell	...	Theodorus Van Gogh
Madge Kennedy	...	Anna Cornelia Van Gogh
Jill Bennett	...	Willemien Van Gogh
Lionel Jeffries	...	Doctor Peyron
Laurence Naismith	...	Dr. Bosman
Eric Pohlmann	...	Colbert
Jeanette Sterke	...	Kay
Toni Gerry	...	Johanna Van Gogh

Runtime:

122 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Metrocolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Perspecta Sound encoding) (35 mm optical prints) (Westrex Recording System) | 4-Track Stereo (35 mm magnetic prints) (Westrex Recording System)

Certification:

UK:A (original rating) | UK:PG (re-rating) (1993) | Australia:PG | Finland:K-12 | Sweden:15 | Canada:PG

Filming Locations:

's-Gravenhage, Zuid-Holland, Netherlands

Company:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Trivia:

Director Vincente Minnelli had a portion of a field spray-painted yellow to closer resemble Vincent van Gogh's painting.

Quotes:

Paul Gauguin: To say 'I love you' would break my teeth.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Can Hieronymus Merkin Ever Forget Mercy Humppe and Find True Happiness? (1969)

Okay, But It Should Have Been Much More

The best part of this film was to see so many of Vincent Van Gogh's paintings. There must have been at least a hundred of them shown in this movie.

It's a biography of a tragic life, one of the most famous artists of all time, and a tortured soul, but the film isn't as interesting as one would hope for such a figure.

It just doesn't have the emotion and the charisma of "Moulin Rouge" (1952) in which we see the bio of another famous French painter of that era: Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec.

Kirk Douglas is okay as Van Gogh, perhaps not up to Jose Frerrer's high standards with Toulouse-Lautrec, but still convincing in showing the artist's desperate fight against loneliness and his passion for his artwork.

I am probably being too harsh constantly comparing this to Moulin Rouge but I also noticed a big difference in the cinematography, too. This just wasn't as visually striking as it should be, especially since Van Gogh loved to paint in the beautiful French countryside.

The film still has its merits and thankfully didn't get depressing dwelling on Van Gogh's mental problems. It also had good supporting roles turned in by James Donald and Anthony Quinn.

I was still anxious to see this on a widescreen DVD when it was issued in recent months but every report I read said the DVD transfer was poor, a big disappointment.