Modigliani (2004)

For many motifs I see this film as special. For atmosphere, for Romanian actors performances, for an inspired portrait of Modigliani. And for the nuances of battle against Picasso . Short, a real interesting biopic.

It's around 1919 Paris. Italian artist Amedeo Modigliani (Andy Garcia) is in heated competition with the angry pompous Pablo Picasso (Omid Djalili). Modigliani is a confident flamboyant Jew in love with the Catholic Jeanne Hébuterne (Elsa Zylberstein). She has a child with him that her disapproving father won't allow him to even see. Modigliani needs money to take and raise his child. There is an annual art competition that nobody good enters and Modigliani signs up for it. This draws Picasso into the competition.This movie opens with the most decisive of all disclaimer about how fictional this movie is. I'm sure the lawyers had a field day but they should have kept it much simpler. I think it's actually possible to make a fictional movie about real people. The movie itself is a scrambled prodding tired mess. It moves in a confused timeline jigsaw. I'm sure that I missed plenty of stuff. Sometimes things don't get explained well. It also doesn't help that the international cast are all doing their own different accents. Andy Garcia is always magnetic but he is never anybody other than Andy Garcia. He needs to stretch out his acting to create other personalities because he is the same character in every movie since 'The Untouchables'. And quite frankly, this movie is way too long trying to do too much without any kind of central vision. The style is all over the place. Some of it is interesting, but most of it look like a cheap TV movie trying to look grand. There are also some strange choices like a skinny model playing a woman doctor in 1919. I haven't seen anything else from writer/director Mick Davis. He seems to be a man desperately trying to make an art film. This movie had more ambition than capabilities.

I couldn't disagree more with this movie's rating on this site. In my opinion, it is one one the best movies ever filmed. The motives of rivalry and endless love are intertwining making this movie exiting and, although many of us know about this story and it's tragic end, unpredictable. You can see Andy Garcia in one of his, in my opinion, best roles. Paris in that period comes to life, all the details are well concluded and have meaning. This is not your typical biography. It is a movie about a great, misunderstood man and his bohemian way of life. His passion for painting and the love of Jeanne will leave you breathless. I strongly recommend to everyone to see this masterpiece. I'm sure that you'll be affected by it and that it will leave you speechless just as it left me.

No. No. Nooooo. Nooooooooooo. Typical Hollywood dirge. Disgusting. Crap. Unwathchable. Another Godfather. Nothing of redeeming value. Nothing. Not one thing. None. Don't watch this. If you want to watch a film about an artist, watch Lust for Life. Or, watch paint dry. It will be better for you and more entertaining. At least you won't have anger issues or nightmares. And, you'll see real paint. God help us! God save us from Hollywood style movies. I mean propaganda. I mean lectures. I mean violent, juvenile, pop-philosophy manipulations. I mean artificial, staged, formulaic, insipid, exaggerated, preposterous, and most importantly, phony garbage. No!