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Alice Neel
The life and work of Alice Neel (1900-1984), American portrait painter. Part of the narration is chronological, part consists of interviews with friends, other artists, scholars, and family members, particularly two sons, Richard and Hartley, who are none too sanguine about their childhood and their mother's Bohemian life, and the filmmaker himself, a grandson whose querulous voice is heard from time to time. The film also includes footage of Neel, later in life, painting, talking, appearing on television, and giving lectures. Throughout, we see her paintings, bold, frank, and direct. After years of poverty and obscurity, fame comes as she nears 70.
| Release : | 2007 |
| Rating : | 7.3 |
| Studio : | |
| Crew : | Director, Writer, |
| Cast : | |
| Genre : | Documentary |
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Reviews
Just perfect...
This is a coming of age storyline that you've seen in one form or another for decades. It takes a truly unique voice to make yet another one worth watching.
The best films of this genre always show a path and provide a takeaway for being a better person.
The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.
Growing up in New York City, in the 1970s, painter Alice Neel (who died in 1984, at age 84) was often in the news, with a show or retrospective at this or that gallery or museum. Such was the extent of her fame and renown, locally, that it's hard to imagine she was anything other than a famous painter, but in the 2007 documentary, Alice Neel, directed by her grandson Andrew Neel, it is a myth that is quickly dispelled.Alice Neel, the film, is overall a worthy film to see, but director Neel needed to step back, let the personal issues evaporate, then really give a good and hard edit to this film. What could have been great ends up merely good. While a loss, very little produced in the arts fails as well as this film so bear that in mind through the frustrating moments. In this way, the film oddly recapitulates its subject's existence. Good for it, good for us, but for the filmmaker a mixed bag, as the film never recapitulates the complexity of its subject; as if it really could .
This was such a fine biography of a really ordinary women. The close-ups the film maker chose were familiar to those who love the subject's work and that of Chuck Close, one of the commentators. Alice Neel was actually a woman from an ordinary background, but this film pointed out the extraordinary contributions it's possible for such women to make. All it takes is the ability to recognize that no one can define you; Alice Neel was able to be a loving mother as well as an extraordinary artist. The work was close to the film maker, but it had the feeling of objectivity. I especially enjoyed the interaction between his father and the film maker and the scene of the grandmother and her grandson. Enjoy!
