Movie · 2017 · Animation, Drama, History · 1h 35m · PG-13 · English
Curator score: 7.6/10 (322.1K ratings)
The truth is, we cannot speak other than by our paintings.
Overview
A young man arrives at the last hometown of painter Vincent van Gogh to deliver the troubled artist's final letter and ends up investigating his final days there.
Ratings
Curator score: 7.6/10
IMDb: 7.8/10
Letterboxd: 4.01/5
Rotten Tomatoes: 84%
Metacritic: 62
TMDB: 8.0/10
Director
Hugh Welchman, DK Welchman
Production
Breakthru Films, Trademark Films, RBF Productions, Odra-Film, Centrum Technologii Audiowizualnych
Cast
Douglas Booth, Robert Gulaczyk, Eleanor Tomlinson, Helen McCrory, Saoirse Ronan, Chris O'Dowd, John Sessions, Jerome Flynn, Aidan Turner, Holly Earl, Cezary Łukaszewicz, Martin Herdman, James Greene, Bill Thomas, Josh Burdett, Robin Hodges, Carole Le Clanche, Graham Pavey, Shaun Newnham, Joe Stuckey
Where to watch
Netflix, Netflix Standard with Ads
Curator Review
Verdict
A visually extraordinary art-house biographical mystery that turns van Gogh’s life into a moving painting. The story is a little schematic, but the craftsmanship and emotional pull make it a standout for viewers who value form as much as narrative.
Best for
animation fans
art-history enthusiasts
viewers drawn to painterly visuals and formal experimentation
people who like melancholy biographical dramas
fans of mystery stories built around an artist's life
Skip if
you want a tightly plotted detective story
you dislike stylized animation or impressionistic storytelling
you prefer energetic pacing over mood and atmosphere
you need a fully definitive historical account
Overview
Loving Vincent is less a conventional biopic than an act of devotion. Its hand-painted frames create a living canvas that feels both technically astonishing and emotionally sincere, turning every scene into a tribute to van Gogh’s eye, anguish, and legacy.
Worth noting
The mystery framework gives the film a clear spine, but the real draw is the sensation of inhabiting a world made of brushstrokes. That approach can make the drama feel slightly diffuse, yet it also deepens the film’s melancholy and sense of reverence.
Bottom line
If you respond to cinema as craft, this is a rare one. It is moving, haunting, and often breathtaking, even when the narrative itself is more elegant than gripping.
Top Letterboxd reviews
shannon (3.5★) · 5965 likes
THEY ACTUALLY PAINTED EVERY. SINGLE. FRAME. ALL OF IT. PAINTED. LIKE A PROPER FANCY PAINTING. EVERYTHING IN THIS MOVIE IS PAINTED BY A PERSON WITH THEIR HANDS. FOR EVERY SINGLE MOMENT IN THIS MOVIE, THERE IS A LITERAL HARD COPY REAL PAINTING. THAT'S INSANE AND BEAUTIFUL I'M LOSING MY SHIT OVER HERE WHAT IS GOING ON ...this is amazing. I'm giving my life for this film
lauren (3.5★) · 3094 likes
“what’s wrong with vincent?”
“he seemed SO happy”
“what could’ve gone wrong?”
*me scremaing into a megaphone* DEEEEPPPRREEESSIONNNN
Lucy (4.5★) · 2834 likes
i love and support these moving globs of paint
Siena 🌞 (3.5★) · 1663 likes
further proof that Saoirse Ronan is literally a work of art
mads (4★) · 1650 likes
"I want to touch people with my art. I want them to say: he feels deeply, he feels tenderly"
I had the privilege of being able to see some of Vincent van Gogh's pieces in New York last summer. And when you're standing there, facing the painting, all the tourists and noise fade away, it's just you and the art, and you get this intense, almost dizzying, feeling that he felt so passionately about life itself in order to create… more