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| The film poster for Finding Gauguin. |
Poor impressions
By Miranda Inganni
In this fictional tale about the final years of impressionist painter Paul Gauguin, a young artist enters the picture to help Gauguin transition through the last phase of his life.
Gauguin (Lee Don Taicher, who also wrote, produced and directed the film) is an aging artist, living in the Marquesas Islands, a French colony. As he pushes harder against the French and becomes more and more involved with the natives, he finds trouble with the government from which he was trying to escape when he left his native country.
As Gauguin’s civil disobedience lands him in jail, a young American lands on the island in search of his artistic idol. While Gauguin’s health fails him, the young American takes on the role of protector and student -- the child who has to care for his ailing parent and the one painter who can help his master complete his final work.
Sadly, the actors have very little to work with. The writing is stilted, the accents sound phony and the way Gauguin is portrayed makes him very hard to like, or even sympathetic. Taicher’s Gauguin is a self-centered egomaniac, who has a seemingly idealistic relationship with the woman he calls his wife. And clearly, Gauguin was far more interested in drinking, smoking, feeling sorry for himself and having three-ways with other willing women. (And apparently, in early-1900s, French Polynesia, woman had perfect teeth and nails, no underarm hair and perfectly trimmed lady bits. Right.)
Finding Gauguin is sentimental without any emotion. The bond between the young American and Gauguin could be touching, but isn’t. There is no reason to believe that this great artist thought his life worthless simply because his paintings weren’t selling in Paris.
(Finding Gauguin screens during the Arpa International Film Festival, Sept. 25, 1 p.m., Rigler Theatre. For more information: http://www.itsmyseat.com/AFFMA.html)
In this fictional tale about the final years of impressionist painter Paul Gauguin, a young artist enters the picture to help Gauguin transition through the last phase of his life.
Gauguin (Lee Don Taicher, who also wrote, produced and directed the film) is an aging artist, living in the Marquesas Islands, a French colony. As he pushes harder against the French and becomes more and more involved with the natives, he finds trouble with the government from which he was trying to escape when he left his native country.
As Gauguin’s civil disobedience lands him in jail, a young American lands on the island in search of his artistic idol. While Gauguin’s health fails him, the young American takes on the role of protector and student -- the child who has to care for his ailing parent and the one painter who can help his master complete his final work.
Sadly, the actors have very little to work with. The writing is stilted, the accents sound phony and the way Gauguin is portrayed makes him very hard to like, or even sympathetic. Taicher’s Gauguin is a self-centered egomaniac, who has a seemingly idealistic relationship with the woman he calls his wife. And clearly, Gauguin was far more interested in drinking, smoking, feeling sorry for himself and having three-ways with other willing women. (And apparently, in early-1900s, French Polynesia, woman had perfect teeth and nails, no underarm hair and perfectly trimmed lady bits. Right.)
Finding Gauguin is sentimental without any emotion. The bond between the young American and Gauguin could be touching, but isn’t. There is no reason to believe that this great artist thought his life worthless simply because his paintings weren’t selling in Paris.
(Finding Gauguin screens during the Arpa International Film Festival, Sept. 25, 1 p.m., Rigler Theatre. For more information: http://www.itsmyseat.com/AFFMA.html)
