Picasso: Magic, Sex, Death
Picture: C+ Sound: B-
Extras: B Film: B
There have been a few
documentaries and even short films made about Picasso or have dealt in one way
or another with Picasso. A more recent
look is done in the new DVD set Picasso:
Magic, Sex, Death, which explores his work along with those themes
simultaneously. When dealing with most
painters or artists and trying to capture their work onto film it can be
complicated. Take for example the films
that have portrayed the life or artists like Vincent Van Gogh or Jackson
Pollock. Have they been able to reach beneath the paint or do they focus too tightly on the turmoil or the
artist. A good example would be The Horse’s Mouth starring Alec Guinness, which was about the made-up
artist Gulley Jimson in his battle over creativity and criticism.
Pablo Picasso has been a
major influential force in the 20th century and looking back now to
analyze his work we gain a better understanding of the overall context of his
work and their significance. Often it is
hard to judge a piece of art until we see the future and what kind of broader
scope it is able to embellish. Some
might argue this case and state that art is eternal and has a place no matter
what the context or time, which in some ways is true. To take my point further lets think about the
ancient painting that have been found on walls of caves, which have taught us a
lot about the culture of those that lived then and the artists visions. However,
the work that survived is the only work that can be critiqued, but what if we
were to have a way to see all of the artwork from this period and compared and
contrasted with other work. Instead, we
are left with only some remains for which they become important simply because
of their existence, not necessarily their aesthetic qualities.
Then there is the question
of what makes art good. A recent attempt
to bring this question to life came in 2003’s Mona Lisa Smile, for which the film was onto something, but became
too involved with other points than to address issues like analyzing art. One might suggest that a good piece of art is
able to capture an audience and be able to translate meaning to them. To move them.
Picasso was able to do so, but he had to reach a different audience because
his work was beyond what was considered ‘normal’ at the time. His visions of creativity seemed simplistic,
yet when one goes to recreate this art they realize the craft behind it. There is a fine line between junk that looks
like art and just plain junky art.
Picasso obviously was able to convey various themes, but this
documentary focuses in on three of them and not just how they are reflected in
his work, but in his life as well.
For this release BFS has
issued the film in a 2-disc set, which features the entire 150-minute program
as well as some insightful extras.
Presented in a full-frame aspect ratio the documentary looks good
considering all the various clips throughout the years. Some of the segments reminded me of Jackson
Pollock: Love and Death on Long
Island, which dealt
with the origins of Pollock’s success and criticism. What is particularly
refreshing here is that the material is focused and deals with three topics,
which makes it powerful. A Dolby Digital
2.0 stereo track is provided and supplies the usual type of documentary sound
design with dialogue being almost mono in origin coming through two
speakers.
The extras include a
DVD-ROM portion, which goes through the timeline of Picasso and then there is a
segment entitled Picasso: In His Own
Words, which makes for a nice addition rounding off this low-key release
quite nice. A trivia section is neither
lengthy nor difficult, but gives the viewer something to do afterwards.
- Nate Goss
