"Better a fallen rocket than never a burst of light."
~ Tom Stoppard, The Invention of Love

Sunday, March 16, 2014

Inside the Mind of Leonardo (2013)

 
I suppose, technically, you’d call this a documentary, but it’s unlike any documentary I’ve ever seen.  Sumptuous, artful, and evocative, this TV film is first and foremost a sensory experience.  In a way, it’s probably the most fitting means of exploring a man like Leonardo da Vinci.
 
Apart from a handful of informative lines printed across the screen (stringing together the major events and details of da Vinci’s life,) every word in this program comes da Vinci’s journals and writings.  There are very few trappings of a traditional bio-documentary – shots of particular paintings or sketches (including some roughly-animated recreations) and not much else.  The camera instead films sights, people, and locales that punctuate da Vinci’s words:  majestic waterfalls, proportional human faces, the frosting-coated spires of La Scala, a falconer at work.
 
As with “Who’s Afraid of Machiavelli?” PC performs da Vinci’s writings.  Once again, he’s not made to look specifically in character, although one might argue that he’s dressed in the spirit of da Vinci, if not accurately.  While some of his lines are delivered through voiceover, many sequences are direct shots of PC giving monologues in what is presumably meant to be da Vinci’s studio.
 
PC’s involvement here is far more “actorly” than his work in “Who’s Afraid of Machiavelli?”  He captures da Vinci’s thirst for knowledge, his probing intelligence, and his almost frenzied drive to create a legacy for himself.  The excerpts he performs touch on a stunning array of topics.  Da Vinci’s thoughts on art, nature, love, lust, war, integrity, invention.  His careful plans and calculations.  His endless questions.  His pain at the loss of his father, at the aspersions cast on his sexuality.  Even his shopping lists.  PC brings da Vinci to life with his performance, doing some really stunning work all around.
 
It’s a great program, truly beautiful.  The music is highly effective and the visuals are gorgeous.  I’m reminded of The Diving Bell and the Butterfly or the lovely, plot-less interludes in The Tree of Life.  Dare I even invoke the name of Wong Kar-wai?  Not so much about learning the facts of da Vinci, but very much about endeavoring to understand and empathize with da Vinci.
 
Accent Watch
 
Scottish.
 
Recommend?
 
In General – I would.  Eye-catching, wonderfully sensory, and fascinating.  Very one-of-a-kind, much like Da Vinci.
 
PC-wise – Yep.  PC is fantastic here.
 
Warnings
 
Some sexual discussion (but Renaissance-era, so not exactly graphic) and talk of war.

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