Beloved Van Gogh: Thank you for loving us tenderly

Charlotte 2022-03-28 09:01:07

First of all, the title of the film "Beloved Van Gogh" is wrongly translated. "Loving Vicent" should be his usual epilogue in his letters to his brother Theo, meaning "Loving you, Van Gogh", or "from Van Gogh who loved you". He said he loves the world, he loves us, not we love him. No one loved him back then. He died in loneliness.

There are two shortcomings of the film, one is the 65,000 shots of the paintings, which is really successful and also Xiao He, and the failure is also Xiao He. The audience was so impressed by Van Gogh's works that they focused on it, especially the slowly falling sunset, the rustling rain, and the candlelight in Van Gogh's room in the middle of the night, all made people feel ecstatic, because everyone I saw the dynamic world of Van Gogh, but at the same time, it made everyone pay too much attention to these brushstrokes, which almost became an easter egg game, but not so much attention to the plot.

The second point is the story itself. I think the plot is okay, but it shouldn't be made into a suspense movie. You spent so much energy depicting Van Gogh's works one by one just to investigate a cause of death? Taking the clue of the postman's son delivering letters to find Van Gogh's life motives is a good introduction, but the focus should not be on the cause of his death, but on his life before his death. As Margaret said, "Have you ever wondered how he lived?" Why not question his mind and soul? Therefore, it should not be limited to these few figures related to his secular life, but should ask people who have more intersection with him in art, such as the Theo family, Gauguin, etc., and lead to Van Gogh's life from them.

Let's talk about Van Gogh himself. I know very little about him. The first time I saw Van Gogh was in the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam more than ten years ago. Later, I saw his paintings in Chicago and Los Angeles one after another. Beautiful and warm. Of course, everyone loves him. I think his accomplishment lies in what he said himself: I feel too much. Too deeply and too tenderly. The world in his eyes must be 1,100 times more beautiful than ours, similar to the shock of a monk who has never been out of a temple going down a mountain to see the human world, or a colorblind patient wearing glasses that can identify colors. At the same time, he was overwhelmed by so much information and feelings, he was different, and he was exhausted. He felt dragged down by the world. This is what I believe was the ultimate cause of his death.

I didn't know he was such a motivated painter before, and this was the saddest thing about him after watching the movie. He was not born alone. He wanted so much to prove himself, he wanted so much to open up his feelings and soul to the world, because he knew that his feelings were a treasure trove, he painted with confidence, and felt that he could be understood by the world through his paintings. Eight years ago as a painter, he had these feelings. These eight years were just an outlet for him, so he was able to let the things in his heart rush out. That's why people are surprised how someone who picks up a paintbrush at the age of 28 and has only been painting for eight years can become a master artist. Sadly, he was not recognized by the world until his death, and it hurts to think that he only sold one painting. He lives in the pain of not being understood by the world, and his confidence in his talent adds to that pain. Therefore, he chose to end his life. If he can see these honors behind him, I think he will be very satisfied (as if a certain TV series was filmed like this). Unfortunately, we were not able to satisfy him during his lifetime.

But he doesn't complain. He loved the world so tenderly, and wrote to his brother Theo so tenderly. Those words, those tender inspirations, those observations and perceptions of the world, I believe he wanted to say to the world. Vincent, thank you for loving us. We love you, we all love you.

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Extended Reading

Loving Vincent quotes

  • Doctor Gachet: Son of the great Joseph Roulin, giant of the South with Dostoevsky's soul. That's what Vincent called your father.

  • Doctor Gachet: Two weeks later, I am sitting at his bedside, and he is dying. The only words he said, Maybe it is better for everyone.