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All About Art – 4 Picture Perfect Films
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FILMED IN LUXEMBOURG

All About Art – 4 Picture Perfect Films

August 24th, 2017 Sonja BEST OF FILM LISTS, ENGLISH FILMS, FILM REVIEWS, FILMED IN BELGIUM, FILMED IN CANADA, FILMED IN LUXEMBOURG, FILMED IN THE NETHERLANDS, FILMED IN THE UK, FILMED IN THE USA
All About Art – 4 Picture Perfect Films
(Last Updated On: 3rd May 2018)

These picture perfect art films are a great way to learn more about the life of famous artists and to travel back in time! Here are four of my all-time artistic favorites…

1. Big Eyes (2014) – filmed in Vancouver, Canada and California & Hawaii, USA

The Story: Tim Burton's biopic Big Eyes is based on the real-life story of the female painter Margaret Keane (Amy Adams) and her controlling second husband Walter Keane (Christoph Waltz).

Margaret married Keane shortly after she had run away from her first husband with her daughter and in this difficult situation, saw Keane as "a blessing". It was the 1950s after all.

Walter is a painter as well… or so he said, because Margaret had never once seen him actually painting one. Instead, Walter is more interested in making big money out of his wife's big children's eyes…

Scene from "Big Eyes". © The Weinstein Company

Scene from "Big Eyes". © The Weinstein Company

I really liked this film because it's a great biopic as well as an intriguing time travel trip into the 1950s. It gets pretty dramatic, but also features many funny scenes. For example the court scene at the end when the judge asks Walter and Margaret to paint in order to determine who lied…

Location Spotting: In addition to San Francisco and Los Angeles in California as well as the immensely beautiful Waikiki, O'ahu, Hawaii, many scenes have been shot in Vancouver, British Columbia on the west coast of Canada.

My verdict: An inspiring biopic about art, relationships and a strong woman!

**** 4 out of 5 stars

2. Gambit (2012) – filmed in Albuquerque, USA and London, UK

The story: Colin Firth and Cameron Diaz are partners in crime in this hilarious comedy about a fake Monet.

Harry Deane (Colin Firth) is a British art curator who decides to seek revenge on this abusive boss Lord Shabandar (Alan Rickman) by making him buy a fake Monet painting.

Deane then teams up with a master art forger (Tom Courtenay) and travels to Alpine, Texas. Here, he successfully recruits rodeo queen PJ Puznowski (Cameron Diaz) for this scheme and takes her to London.

Scene from "Gambit". © CBS Films

Scene from "Gambit". © CBS Films

I thought the film was better than its trailer suggests, especially the scene in which Firth climbs on top of the Savoy hotel in London in his undies!

Location Spotting: Much of the film's action takes place in the UK, for example Colin Firth's underwear balcony scene at the Savoy Hotel in London. Albuquerque, New Mexico was one of the main shooting locations for the Rodeo and Western scenes in America.

My verdict: See this if you want to see Colin Firth in his undies, Cameron Diaz talking in the broadest Southern accent or just to laugh at all those other funny scenes!

**** 4 out of 5 stars

3. Girl with a Pearl Earring (2003) – filmed in Delft & Amsterdam, the Netherlands; Damme, Belgium and Luxembourg

The Story: Although a bit older now, this is clearly my all-time favourite film about art! When you watch this film it's as if you step right into the famous painting itself.

Girl with a Pearl Earring tells the fictional, but perhaps likely story that a 17-year-old maidservant in the house of painter Johannes Vermeer was the in fact the model and muse for his famous portrait.

Scene from "Girl with a Pearl Earring". © Lionsgate

Scene from "Girl with a Pearl Earring". © Lionsgate

I have read the book and seen this film many times over. Every time I watch it I feel as if I am actually in Delft, Holland during the 17th century. Everything in it is so real and so quiet… just like in the painting and not at all like your typical Hollywood movie.

Colin Firth (again!) is superb as always as the master painter Vermeer. Scarlett Johansson as the shy, submissive and yet curious maid looks so much like the girl in the original painting that she makes it easy for us to believe this romantic story.

Location Spotting: This film has been shot at several locations in Belgium, Luxembourg and the Netherlands – including beautiful Delft in the south of the Netherlands, which was Jan Vermeer's real-life hometown.

My verdict: Watch it if you're a history and / or art lover, you will love the picture-perfect time warp!

***** 5 out of 5 stars

Tulip Fever (2017) – filmed in the UK

Scene from "Tulip Fever". © The Weinstein Company

Scene from "Tulip Fever". © The Weinstein Company

A masterpiece with Christoph Waltz, Alicia Vikander, Dane DeHaan and Dame Judi Dench!

The story: In 17th century the Netherlands, during the period of the tulip mania, a young artist (Dane DeHaan) is commissioned to paint the portrait of a young lady called Sophia (Alicia Vikander).

Despite the fact that Sophia is married to a wealthy merchant (Christoph Waltz), she falls in love with the artist. Hoping to build a future together, the two lovers decide to invest in the risky tulip stock share market.

Location spotting: The story is fictions and the film was mostly shot in the UK instead of the Netherlands, but I am sure that for real art and history lovers, this one will be a treat nevertheless!

Read the full film review in my post Tulip Fever (2017) – filmed in the UK

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Sonja

Sonja

I am an ex London expat now living back in Germany. Having worked part-time in a cinema since my school days, the cinema (or in 2020 rather Netflix & co) is my second home. If you don't find me there, I am probably travelling the world in order to trace my favourite film locations and film settings. On filmfantravel.com, I combine these two passions by sharing my best tips about film-inspired travel. Join the journey on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram @filmfantravel!

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One of my favourite Christmas series to look forward to this year was the second season of the Norwegian romcom series “Home for Christmas” (OT: Hjem til jul) with @idaelisebroch_official and @felixsandman! The series was released on Netflix on 18 December 2020. 

When I was working as a tour guide in Norway this summer, I was lucky enough to pass by Røros - the UNESCO world heritage town that served as the setting and main film location for the series! 

Read more about the series and its film location Røros on my blog FilmFanTravel.com(link in my bio above)! 

Which Christmas movie has inspired your upcoming travels? 

Photo 1: Scene from “Home for Christmas” (2019-) filmed in Røros, Norway. © Netflix. Photo 2: Me at the same street in Røros, Norway in August 2020. © Sonja Irani / FilmFanTravel.com

#destinationroros #destinasjonrøros  #netflix #netflixshows #norway #roros #homeforchristmasnetflix #hjemtiljul #dreamchasersnorway #traveleurope #filminspiredtravel #filmlocation #filmlocations #movielocations #lovescandinavia #norway #visitnorway #bestofscandinavia #dreamynorway #norwaytravel #norwaytrip #onlyinnorway #rorørosregionen #godjul @visitnorway

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Who else was inspired to put Paris on their post-pandemic travel list by watching “Emily in Paris”?

Photo 1: Scene from “Emily in Paris” (2020-). © Netflix. Photo 2: © Sonja Irani / FilmFanTravel.com

#emilyinparis #netflix #netflixshows #paris #france #citytrip #traveleurope #filminspiredtravel #filmlocation #filmlocations #movielocations #lilycollins #thisisparis #visitparis #ig_paris #parisianlife #hello_france #parisjetaime #parislife #exploreparis

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The castle’s unique attraction is to kiss the famous Blarney stone on top of the castle. What’s more... you apparently get the gift of eloquence afterwards. The catch: You have to lean over backwards - head first - to reach it! Apart from that, kissing a stone that millions others have kissed before is not exactly in line with the current Covid hygiene rules... 😂

As far as I know Blarney Castle itself has not yet been used as a filming location, but the website states that it’s open for bookings for TV and movie crews. Maybe something to look forward to in the year 1 or 2 AC (After Corona). 😂🙈 Let’s hope so because with Ireland being the main film location of major TV and movie productions such as “Game of Thrones”, “Star Wars” and “Vikings”, there is much to discover for film fans! 🤗
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