Lust for Life [Blu-ray]

Overview

This filmed biography of Vincent Van Gogh was adapted by Norman Corwin from the best-selling novel by Irving Stone, which was in turn inspired by the written correspondence between Van Gogh and his brother Theo. Kirk Douglas plays the tormented genius, whose obsessive devotion to his art engulfs, consumes, and finally destroys him. James Donald costars as Theo Van Gogh, who provides financial and moral support to his brother from the time Vincent leaves his Holland home in 1878 to his death in Auvers in 1890. Anthony Quinn won an Oscar for his eight-minute turn as Van Gogh's fast friend and erstwhile rival Paul Gaugin. Nearly 200 of Van Gogh's original paintings were borrowed from private collections for brief display in the film: some are "recreated" before our eyes, as the artist stands before his easel, spattered with paint and with a look of white-hot intensity burned into his countenance.

Product Details

Release Date:	02/03/2015
UPC:	0883929444373
Original Release:	1956
Rating:	NR
Source:	Warner Home Video
Presentation:	[Wide Screen]
Sound:	[Dolby Digital Mono]
Language:	English
Time:	2:02:00
Sales rank:	16,599

Special Features

Commentary by filmhistorian Dr. Drew Casper; Van Gogh: Darkness Into Light; Theatrical trailer

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Kirk Douglas	Actor
Anthony Quinn	Actor
Pamela Brown	Actor
Everett Sloane	Actor
James Donald	Theo Van Gogh
Niall MacGinnis	Roulin
Noel Purcell	Anton Mauve
Henry Daniell	Theodorus Van Gogh
Madge Kennedy	Anna Cornelia Van Gogh
Jill Bennett	Willemien
Lionel Jeffries	Dr. Peyron
Laurence Naismith	Dr. Bosman
Eric Pohlmann	Colbert
Jeannette Sterke	Kay,Kay
Toni Gerry	Johanna
Wilton Graff	Rev. Stricker
Isobel Elsom	Mrs. Stricker
David Horne	Rev. Peeters
Noel Howlett	Commissioner Van Den Berghe
Ronald Adam	Commissioner De Smet
John Ruddock	Ducrucq
Julie Robinson	Rachel
David Leonard	Camille Pissarro
David Bond	Seurat
Frank Perls	Pere Tanguy
Jay Adler	Waiter
Laurence Badie	Adeline Ravoux
Rex Evans	Durand-Ruel
Marion Ross	Sister Clothilde
Mitzi Blake	Elizabeth
Anthony Sydes	Cor
Anthony Eustrel	Tersteeg
Ernestine Barrier	Jet
Jerry Bergen	Henri de Toulouse Lautrec
Belle Mitchell	Mme. Tanguy
Alec Mango	Dr. Rey
Fred Johnson	Cordan
Norman MacGowan	Pier
Mickey Maga	Jan
Miklós Rózsa	Composer
Bill Phipps	Emile Bernard
Jason Gregg	Actor
Betty Blythe	Dowager
Henry Corden	Waiter
John Dodsworth	Handsome Man
Claire Du Brey	Housekeeper
Alex Frazer	Con

Technical Credits

Norman Corwin

Vincente Minnelli	Director
Norman Corwin	Screenwriter
John Houseman	Producer
Wesley C. Miller	Sound Effects
Harold Humbrock	Sound Effects
Van Allen James	Sound Effects

Editorial Reviews

In agreeing to direct Lust for Life, director Vincente Minnelli had to make several painful compromises, including the use of CinemaScope (which robbed some scenes of their intimacy) and Metrocolor (the vibrant hues of Technicolor would have been far better suited to the subject). Still, the infamous ear-slashing scene is handled with impeccable taste by the director, as is Van Gogh's climactic wheat field suicide. Likewise, star Kirk Douglas had to give in on several creative points; for example, the actor wanted to emphasize Van Gogh's latent homosexuality, but the MGM brass would hear none of this. Nominated for an Academy Award, Douglas lost out to Yul Brynner for The King and I. Miklos Rozsa's haunting musical score is the crowning touch on this superlative film. Also see Robert Altman's treatment of the same subject in Vincent and Theo (1990).

All Movie Guide - Hal Erickson