Final Portrait DVD review: Heading behind the camera for the fifth time, Stanley Tucci’s latest project sees Geoffrey Rush play French painter Alberto Giacometti in this utterly riveting and charming Paris-set chamber piece – another fine notch for not only Tucci’s belt but Rush and supporting man Armie Hammer too.
Final Portrait DVD review
Final Portrait DVD review
Films about artists tend to tread a very thin line of tedium and enjoyment, more often than not landing squarely in the former category. It’s never exactly material that leaps off the page in terms of cinematic value and potential so it’s often difficult to keep audiences engaged. Yet, with Final Portrait, his latest directorial effort, it seems as though Stanley Tucci has managed to do just that: he has crafted a very amusing and delightfully sharp film all about an artist and his frustration with his passion and his work, an elegant, resonant and truly fascinating biopic of an equally as fascinating subject.
Based on American art critic James Lord’s memoir of the events, Final Portrait is a snapshot of a three week period in 1946, over which Giacometti invited the young Lord (Armie Hammer) to sit for him – the subject of Giacometti’s latest portrait. Lord is told the painting will only take a few hours, which turns into a few days and then a few days more… and more, seemingly never-ending. But over this time, intrigued by one another, the pair forms a very unlikely friendship and rivalry and Tucci’s screenplay breathe such exuberance into both characters – each, in their own way, so compelling and charming. Giacometti is a stubborn one, constantly doubting his own work and destroying his portraits of Lord as he nears finishing them, due to his own self-contempt with his talent.
His unhappiness feels purposeful – he knows it fuels his work – and Rush is exceptional in the role. He’s very funny, with his constant expression of mundanity often providing some good laughs but it never feels excessive or contrived; yet, despite the moody exterior of the man, Rush’s masterstroke is in giving him enough sincerity and authenticity beneath the surface to let the film’s quieter moments of reflection and genuine sobriety really hit home. He’s matched by an always-impressive Armie Hammer who brings the charm and warmth to match Rush’s droll contempt, yet the character of Lord feels a little thin and underwritten compared to Giacometti. He’s more paint-by-numbers than the intricate and complex inner workings Tucci so carefully layers his lead here with. But the pair work brilliantly off another, their dynamic is witty and real and so enjoyable to watch.
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There is a subplot involving Giacometti and an affair he is having with a very bubbly, buoyant prostitute, Caroline, but it’s definitely the film’s weak-point. It feels tacky and unnecessary, almost as if Tucci hurriedly put it together in an attempt to substantiate his runtime a little more and add a bit more to the story as a whole. Also, the supporting characters sitting on the sidelines to Lord and Giacometti are all paper-thin and one-dimensional; the film doesn’t exactly utilise them with the intention to have us care about them but they feel pretty bland, nonetheless. But the heart of Final Portrait is in the Giacometti and Lord dynamic and it’s effortless. The film is equally as hilarious and delightful as it is riveting and quietly provocative; Stanley Tucci’s writing and his direction here feels tight and slick, for the most part, and he has created a very interesting, very intricate piece here that, like the best of Giacometti’s work itself, has layers and beauty to it beneath the surface.
As far as the special features the DVD provides, it doesn’t offer a lot beyond cast and crew interviews and some b-roll bloopers but it’s still riveting hearing Tucci and co talk about the film and art and the fascinating nature of Giacometti. And the bloopers show Tucci’s gentle stroke of genius in making the film; it’s tender and funny and will have you smiling from ear to ear.
Final Portrait DVD review by Awais Irfan.
Final Portrait is released on UK DVD & Blu-ray on Monday 8th January 2018.
