Girl with a Pearl Earring (2003)

User Rating:

7.1/10   

Director:

Peter Webber

Writers:

Tracy Chevalier (novel)
Olivia Hetreed (screenplay)

Release Date:

9 January 2004 (USA)

Genre:

Biography | Drama | Romance

Tagline:

He had a vision no one saw as clearly as she. In a house where everything had its place, where every image had meaning, he gave her the power to see the light. She gave him a look that would last forever.....

Plot:

A young peasant maid working in the house of painter Johannes Vermeer becomes his talented assistant and the model for one of his most famous works.

Plot Keywords:

Painter | Maid | Painting | Servant | Peasant

Awards:

Nominated for 3 Oscars. Another 12 wins & 34 nominations

Cast

Colin Firth	...	Johannes Vermeer
Scarlett Johansson	...	Griet
Tom Wilkinson	...	Pieter Van Ruijven
Judy Parfitt	...	Maria Thins
Cillian Murphy	...	Pieter
Essie Davis	...	Catharina Bolnes Vermeer
Joanna Scanlan	...	Tanneke
Alakina Mann	...	Cornelia Vermeer
Chris McHallem	...	Griet's Father
Gabrielle Reidy	...	Griet's Mother
Rollo Weeks	...	Frans
Anna Popplewell	...	Maertge
Anaïs Nepper	...	Lisbeth
Melanie Meyfroid	...	Aleydis
Nathan Nepper	...	Johannes
Lola Carpenter	...	Baby Franciscus
Charlotte Carpenter	...	Baby Franciscus
Olivia Chauveau	...	Baby Franciscus
Geoff Bell	...	Paul the Butcher
Virginie Colin	...	Emilie Van Ruijven
Sarah Drews	...	Van Ruijven's Daughter
Christelle Bulckaen	...	Wet Nurse
John McEnery	...	Apothecary
Gintare Parulyte	...	Model
Claire Johnston	...	White-Haired Woman
Marc Maes	...	Old Gentleman
Robert Sibenaler	...	Priest (as Pere Robert Sibenaler)
Dustin James	...	Servant 1
Joe Reavis	...	Servant 2
Martin Serene	...	Sergeant
Chris Kelly	...	Gay Blade
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Leslie Woodhall	...	Neighbour (uncredited)

Directed by
Peter Webber

Writing credits
Tracy Chevalier		(novel)
Olivia Hetreed		(screenplay)

Produced by
Peter Block	....	executive producer
Anna Campeau	....	associate producer
Jason Constantine	....	co-producer
Jimmy de Brabant	....	co-producer
Nick Drake	....	executive producer
Philip Erdoes	....	executive producer
Matthew T. Gannon	....	co-producer
Rebby Gregg	....	associate producer
François Ivernel	....	executive producer
Daria Jovicic	....	executive producer
Cameron McCracken	....	executive producer
Tom Ortenberg	....	executive producer
Andy Paterson	....	producer
Duncan Reid	....	executive producer
Guy Tannahill	....	line producer
Anand Tucker	....	producer

Original Music by
Alexandre Desplat

Cinematography by
Eduardo Serra		(director of photography)

Film Editing by
Kate Evans

Casting by
Leo Davis

Production Design by
Ben van Os

Art Direction by
Christina Schaffer

Set Decoration by
Cecile Heideman

Costume Design by
Dien van Straalen

Makeup Department
Anita Burger	....	makeup artist
Aurélie Elich	....	crowd hair
Aurélie Elich	....	makeup supervisor
René Jordan	....	assistant hair stylist
René Jordan	....	assistant makeup artist
Claudine Moureaud	....	hair assistant
Claudine Moureaud	....	makeup assistant
Joël Seiller	....	additional hair stylist
Jenny Shircore	....	hair designer
Jenny Shircore	....	makeup designer

Production Management
Bénédicte Humbel	....	production manager
Jos van der Linden	....	production manager
Emma Zee	....	post-production supervisor

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Alexandre Brown	....	additional third assistant director
Ralph Eisenmann	....	second assistant director
Sébastien Fernandes Tasch	....	daily third assistant director
Sean Guest	....	first assistant director
Stefan Magnusson	....	third assistant director
Andy Paterson	....	second unit director
Beatrice Pettovich	....	second assistant director
Jim Probyn	....	third assistant director
Julian Stevens	....	additional third assistant director: dailies

Art Department
Boris Bartholomäus	....	construction manager
Klaus Bienen	....	propmaker
Claudio Campana	....	assistant art director
Manuel Demoulling	....	stand-by props
François Dickes	....	props buyer
Ricardo Galvao	....	art department assistant
Annett 'Gogo' Golinski	....	draper
Svet Hrouchoff	....	carpenter
François Mast	....	carpenter
Edouard Pallardy	....	head painter
Barbara Prati	....	painter
Stephanie Rass	....	art department assistant
Rosie Stapel	....	assistant head painter
Todd Van Hulzen	....	set designer

Sound Department
Dirk Bombey	....	boom operator
Peter Burgis	....	foley artist
Arthur Graley	....	foley editor
Arthur Graley	....	sound editor
Nigel Heath	....	sound re-recording mixer
Dan Morgan	....	dialogue editor
Jamie Roden	....	adr mixer
Julian Slater	....	supervising sound editor
Carlo Thoss	....	production sound mixer
Seppe van Groeningen	....	boom operator

Special Effects by
Alain Couty	....	special effects coordinator
Clive R. Kay	....	special effects contact lenses
Lawrence Michael	....	special effects technician

Visual Effects by
Tim Baxter	....	film recording
Charles Darby	....	matte paintings
Paul Edwards	....	visual effects producer: Cinesite
James Eggleton	....	digital I/O support: Cinesite
Stuart Pitcher	....	digital compositor
Dan Victoire	....	digital I/O support
Kathy Wise	....	digital systems manager
Aviv Yaron	....	2D technical director: Cinesite
Roma O'Connor	....	bidding producer (uncredited)
Courtney Vanderslice	....	head of production: Cinesite (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department
Alex Aach	....	clapper loader
Benny Ashoff	....	focus puller: "b" camera
Jaap Buitendijk	....	still photographer
Gilbert Degrand	....	best boy
Dieter Depypere	....	epk camera operator
Kevin Dresse	....	electrician
Johnny Feurer	....	focus puller: "b" camera
Svet Hrouchoff	....	grip assistant
Max Jacoby	....	clapper loader: "b" camera
Nunes Neto Ornei	....	grip
José Alberto Pinto de Jesus	....	electrician
Mike Proudfoot	....	camera operator
Mike Roberts	....	video assist operator
Alf Tramontin	....	Steadicam operator
Alf Tramontin	....	camera operator: "b" camera
Tony Turner	....	key grip
Wolfgang Wesemann	....	assistant camera

Casting Department
Louis Elman	....	adr voice casting

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Vesna Libric	....	wardrobe assistant
Magdalena Marczynska	....	wardrobe assistant
Jovana Sujdovic	....	wardrobe assistant
Aleksandra Valozic	....	wardrobe
Katja Wolf	....	daily wardrobe assistant

Editorial Department
Steve Farman	....	negative cutter
Matt Gauci	....	avid technical support
Andrew Melhuish	....	first assistant editor

Music Department
Sam Okell	....	assistant scoring engineer

Transportation Department
Gaby Meyers	....	facility/truck driver
Francois Muller	....	truck driver
Igor Pecirep	....	driver: Tom Wilkinson
Otfried Suppin	....	driver
Kevan Willis	....	driver: cast

Other crew
Bob Bellion	....	financial manager
Natasha Coombs	....	script supervisor
Linda Gamble	....	unit publicist
Ambroise Gayet	....	production assistant
Charles Howes	....	tutor
Andrew Jack	....	dialect coach
Paula Jalfon	....	production executive
Joe Kotroczo	....	location assistant
Patricia Kretschmer	....	assistant: Mr. de Brabant
Maurice Landsberger	....	production accountant
Roberto Longobardi	....	production accountant
Richard Morrison	....	title designer
Francois Muller	....	facilities
Sébastien Peiffer	....	location manager
Olivier Printz	....	location assistant
Joanne Reichling	....	production coordinator
Sarah Trowse	....	assistant accountant: Luxembourg
Susan Weeks	....	tutor chaperone
Susanna Wyatt	....	head of physical production: Pathé Pictures

Production Companies

• Archer Street Productions
• Delux Productions
• Film Fund Luxembourg
• Pathé Pictures International
• UK Film Council
• Wild Bear Films

Distributors

• Concorde Filmverleih (2004) (Germany) (theatrical)
• FS Film Oy (2004) (Finland) (theatrical)
• GAGA Communications (Japan) (theatrical)
• Lions Gate Films (2003) (USA) (theatrical)
• Mikado (2004) (Italy) (theatrical)
• Monopole-Pathé (2004) (Switzerland) (theatrical)
• Zima Entertainment (2004) (Mexico) (theatrical)
• A-Film Distribution (2004) (Netherlands)
• Bontonfilm (Czech Republic)
• EuroVideo (2005) (Germany) (DVD)
• FS Film Oy (2004) (Finland) (DVD) (VHS)
• Hollydan Works (2005-????) (Serbia and Montenegro) (DVD)
• ITI Cinema (2004) (Poland) (all media)
• Pathé Distribution (UK)
• Pathé (France)
• Svensk Filmindustri (SF) (Scandinavia)
• Vértigo Films (Spain)
• With Cinema (Korea)
• Yleisradio (YLE) (2007) (Finland) (TV)

Special Effects

• Cinesite (visual effects)
• Capital FX (opticals)
• SFX Factory S.A. (special effects equipment)
• Cinesite

Other Companies

• Abbey Road Studios  music mixed at
• Capital FX  opticals
• Fig Productions  titles
• Film & Television Facilities  facility vehicles
• Hackenbacker Sound  sound post-production
• Kodak  motion picture film supplied by
• Location Consulting & Facilities  facilities vehicles
• Sony Studios  music recorded at

Also Known As:

La jeune fille à la perle (Luxembourg: French title)

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for some sexual content.

Runtime:

100 min

Country:

UK | Luxembourg

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital

Certification:

Iceland:LH | Malaysia:U | Hungary:14 | Czech Republic:12 | South Korea:15 | New Zealand:PG | USA:TV-PG (cable rating) | Australia:PG | Brazil:12 | Finland:K-7 | Germany:6 | Hong Kong:IIA | Italy:T | Netherlands:AL | Norway:11 | Philippines:PG-13 | Singapore:PG | Spain:7 | Sweden:7 | Switzerland:7 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:7 (canton of Vaud) | UK:12A | USA:PG-13

Filming Locations:

Amsterdam, Noord-Holland, Netherlands

Company:

Archer Street Productions

Trivia:

The movie was partially shot on the Venice set that had been built in Luxembourg for Secret Passage (2004). For this movie Venice was modified to become Delft.

Goofs:

Anachronisms: The fork with four points (they are shown among other tools during preparation for the celebration of the baby's birth and Vermeer's new painting) was invented in the 18th century, at the time of Ferdinand the Second, which is almost one century after the film's action.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Griet's Mother: Griet! Leave that.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Mysterious Skin (2004)

Lyrical perfection if it's the sort of thing that turns you on

Is this an incredibly dull movie about a single painting - or is it a mesmerising and penetrating insight into art and a particular 17th century Dutch artist? It probably depends on your point of view.

Griet is a poor young girl who goes to work for the great Vermeer as a humble servant. She is pushed around emotionally by his overwrought and jealous wife, mischievous children and all-powerful lustful patron. Yet the biggest force in her life, gradually teasing out her own artistic sensibilities, is the Master himself. Griet becomes the subject of his most famous painting, lured by a mixture of dread and fascination.

For Vermeer the artist, his work is all-consuming. Every part of his world – the welfare of his family, his eccentricities, his whole energy and purpose in life, is concentrated into his work. That is not to say he lacks morals but simply that his work is his higher calling. To justify such a character, we could look to the role of art and its importance. Art can be worshipped for its own sake, like some wicked effigy, and used to excuse all manner of moral turpitude in its creator; or it can be seen as the entrance by which light can enter our soul, illuminate thought and our world in a way that cold logic alone would deny us, move us beyond the bounds of our immediate impressions and let us see the world about us in a new way, inspired and informed.

Griet carries this seed, to see beauty where others see only common place things, and it is a seed that the Master nourishes. There are times when Vermeer protects Griet from the people around he,r to whom she is so vulnerable, but is his concern towards her concern for her welfare, secret desire, or just a tool, an exquisite tool, of his trade?

Cinema is also being part of this artistic spectrum, if we allow it to be, affecting us in ways that let the viewer grow rather than just be entertained. Girl With a Pearl Earring certainly has sufficient integrity to do that, but if one just wanted to be entertained then it probably falls short. The art direction beautifully recreates Holland of the period and Scarlett Johansson gives a very well-tempered performance as young Griet. Costumes, music and overall cinematography are accomplished and haunting without loss of subtlety, producing a memorable film for lovers of art and cinema; but if paintings don't do anything for you, this film might not either.