Bringing on screen the life & career of one of the most prolific, gifted & distinguished painters to have ever lived, Mr. Turner could've been a highly fascinating & interesting biopic as the icon it tries to resurrect on the film canvas was considered a highly controversial figure of his era but what it instead turns out to be is a 150 minutes of mostly lifeless cinema that feels twice as long.
Set in mid-nineteenth century, the story of Mr. Turner concerns the last 25 years in the life of the esteemed English painter, J.M.W. Turner. And although the plot does offer glimpses of what drove or inspired the man & his work over the years, its major emphasis is actually on the flawed individual beneath all the fame & recognition who was both admired & despised by everyone.
Written & directed by Mike Leigh, the problem I have with Mr. Turner is that the film is far too longer than it needs to be & is filled with many sequences that add nothing to the story. Production design is commendable, Cinematography puts some breathtaking images on the screen, Editing is a huge letdown & its background score mostly keeps revolving around a single track.
Coming to the performances, Mr. Turner has only one interesting character in it & that's Turner himself, played magnificently by Timothy Spall who also won Best Actor for this role at Cannes. It's a brilliant, committed & thorough performance from the underrated actor who grunts his way throughout the film but without him, I don't think I would've managed to sit through this one.
On an overall scale, Mr. Turner is full of moments that rarely play any significance to the story being told. The scenes that are required to be trimmed are present for an extended period of time & the ones which could've benefited from more screen time are cut abruptly. There's a lot to admire about its camera-work & Spall's performance but as a biopic, it's surprisingly unappealing for the most part.
Set in mid-nineteenth century, the story of Mr. Turner concerns the last 25 years in the life of the esteemed English painter, J.M.W. Turner. And although the plot does offer glimpses of what drove or inspired the man & his work over the years, its major emphasis is actually on the flawed individual beneath all the fame & recognition who was both admired & despised by everyone.
Written & directed by Mike Leigh, the problem I have with Mr. Turner is that the film is far too longer than it needs to be & is filled with many sequences that add nothing to the story. Production design is commendable, Cinematography puts some breathtaking images on the screen, Editing is a huge letdown & its background score mostly keeps revolving around a single track.
Coming to the performances, Mr. Turner has only one interesting character in it & that's Turner himself, played magnificently by Timothy Spall who also won Best Actor for this role at Cannes. It's a brilliant, committed & thorough performance from the underrated actor who grunts his way throughout the film but without him, I don't think I would've managed to sit through this one.
On an overall scale, Mr. Turner is full of moments that rarely play any significance to the story being told. The scenes that are required to be trimmed are present for an extended period of time & the ones which could've benefited from more screen time are cut abruptly. There's a lot to admire about its camera-work & Spall's performance but as a biopic, it's surprisingly unappealing for the most part.