Nightwatching (2007)

An extravagant, exotic and moving look at Rembrandt's romantic and professional life, and the controversy he created by the identification of a murderer in the painting THE NIGHT WATCH

Director:

Peter Greenaway

Writer:

Peter Greenaway

Stars:

Martin Freeman, Emily Holmes, Eva Birthistle

6 wins & 5 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Martin Freeman	...	Rembrandt van Rijn
Emily Holmes	...	Hendrickje
Eva Birthistle	...	Saskia
Jodhi May	...	Geertje
Toby Jones	...	Gerard Dou
Jonathan Holmes	...	Ferdinand Bol
Michael Teigen	...	Carel Fabritius
Kevin McNulty	...	Hendrick Uylenburgh
Agata Buzek	...	Titia Uylenburgh
Natalie Press	...	Marieke
Fiona O'Shaughnessy	...	Marita
Reimer van Beek	...	Titus - newborn
Robert Zalecki	...	Titus - 4 months
Kacper Kasiecki	...	Titus - toddler
Anna Antonowicz	...	Catharina

Storyline

The year 1642 marks the turning point in the life of the famous Dutch painter, Rembrandt, turning him from a wealthy respected celebrity into a discredited pauper. At the insistence of his pregnant wife Saskia, Rembrandt has reluctantly agreed to paint the Amsterdam Musketeer Militia in a group portrait that will later become to be known as The Nightwatch. He soon discovers that there is a conspiracy afoot with the Amsterdam merchants playing at soldiers maneuvering for financial advantage and personal power in, that time, the richest city in the Western World. Rembrandt stumbles on a foul murder. Confident in the birth of a longed-for son and heir, Rembrandt is determined to expose the conspiring murderers and builds his accusation meticulously in the form of the commissioned painting, uncovering the seamy and hypocritical side to Dutch Society in the Golden Age. Rembrandt's great good fortune turns. Saskia dies. Rembrandt reveals the accusation of murder in the painting and the ...

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Plot Keywords:

dutch | group | painter | revenge | conspiracy | 

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Genres:

Biography | Drama | History | Mystery

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for strong sexual content, graphic nudity and language

Details

Official Sites:

Official site Official site [fr]

Country:

UK Poland Canada Netherlands

Language:

English

Release Date:

2 November 2007 (Poland)

Also Known As:

A Ronda da Noite

Filming Locations:

Amsterdam, Noord-Holland, Netherlands

Box Office

Budget:

$7,500,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

ContentFilm International, Wales Creative IP Fund, UK Film Council

Technical Specs

Runtime:

134 min 141 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Quotes

Titia Uylenburgh: Women in the 17th century are allowed to smoke, write, correspond with Descartes, wear spectacles, insult the Pope, and breast-feed babies.

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Connections

Spin-off Rembrandt's J'Accuse (2008)

User Reviews

Makes My Eyes Happy

My wife and I are film buffs, not professional movie reviewers. But both of us had strong reactions to Nightwatching.

My wife's reaction: Nightwatching put her to sleep. My reaction was, I think, I bit more nuanced.

In my opinion the world needs more movies about the 17th century. And it wouldn't hurt to have more movies that are intellectual rather than sensational. Therefore, I was delighted to find Nightwatching on the shelf at Premiere Video in my M-Street neighborhood in Dallas, Texas.

Nightwatching is a visual delight. The sets, the costumes, the way the scenes are lighted in the manner of Rembrandt's own paintings, all these elements of this movie were delightful to me. And Martin Freeman's acting made Rembrandt's prickly, flawed character leap right off the screen into my heart.

Although this is not a film that could ever be a commercial success, I thank Peter Greenaway and his collaborators from the bottom of my heart for making it. I will view it again the next time my eyes want to be happy.