"a title like that, it is also perhaps treading on other hallowed ground: that of Derek Jarman, whose 1986 biopic is arguably the most brilliant rendering of the great painter's life and death. By contrast, this Caravaggio is a much more orthodox art-documentary treatment of its subject, playing to the strengths that the EoS films have built up over the years: beautifully crisp and detailed closeups of the work, well-informed and articulate talking-heads, and a nicely judged overall approach that is intelligent but not indigestible."
"The aim is to fill in the void of the painter's personality, of which, outside police and court reports, very little is known. Bannell certainly gives it his all and, tricked out in full beard and makeup effect facial wound, definitely looks the part alarmingly so when the film cuts to a shot of David with the Head of Goliath, which gruesomely contains Caravaggio's own features on the severed head."
The film presents Caravaggio through high-resolution closeups of paintings, informed talking-head commentary, and a measured narrative approach. Joint directors David Bickerstaff and Phil Grabsky insert performances by Jack Bannell as Caravaggio to supply a dramatized sense of personality, especially during the painter's turbulent final years of movement between Rome, Naples, and Malta. Bannell's appearance and wounds visually echo Caravaggio's work, creating unsettling juxtapositions. The documentary outlines the step-by-step progression of the early career and emphasizes Caravaggio's committed Christian faith. The overall tone remains orthodox and intelligent, prioritizing visual detail and scholarly context over experimental biography.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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