The Doctor and Amy travel back in time to meet Vincent Van Gogh and face an invisible monster that only the painter can see.The Doctor and Amy travel back in time to meet Vincent Van Gogh and face an invisible monster that only the painter can see.The Doctor and Amy travel back in time to meet Vincent Van Gogh and face an invisible monster that only the painter can see.
- Director
- Writers
- Richard Curtis
- Steven Moffat
- Sydney Newman(uncredited)
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaAfter the broadcast in the UK, a special announcement broadcasting a suicide prevention number was made.
- GoofsBoth of Vincent's ears are intact. At least part of Vincent van Gogh's left ear was cut off in December 1888, more than a year and a half before his encounter with The Doctor and Amy.
- Quotes
The Doctor: Between you and me, in a hundred words, where do you think Van Gogh rates in the history of art?
Curator: Well... um... big question, but, to me Van Gogh is the finest painter of them all. Certainly the most popular, great painter of all time. The most beloved, his command of colour most magnificent. He transformed the pain of his tormented life into ecstatic beauty. Pain is easy to portray, but to use your passion and pain to portray the ecstasy and joy and magnificence of our world, no one had ever done it before. Perhaps no one ever will again. To my mind, that strange, wild man who roamed the fields of Provence was not only the world's greatest artist, but also one of the greatest men who ever lived.
- ConnectionsFeatured in Doctor Who Live: The Afterparty (2013)
It really is about the meaning of madness and depression. Van Gogh is the strange madman in the village whose paintings remain unappreciated. Society in his era did not understand depression.
The monster which is invisible (signifying mental illness) is alone, abandoned and blind. Lashing out because it is frightened.
Scottish actor Tony Curran, more often employed to play a heavy on American shows knows he has a role of a lifetime. He takes it by the scruff of the neck. His Vincent is wild, romantic and emotional. Seeing monsters where others do not. The Doctor is the only man he has met who understands his pain.
What makes this episode stand out is the photography, sound and the location shooting. Trogir in Croatia stands in for the fields of Provence. Magnificent use of visuals, look at the way the night sky begins to depict the painting of The Starry Night. The use of the song by Athlete to give it an emotional hook as Van Gogh looks on as people admire his paintings at the Musee de Orsay.
Bill Nighy makes an uncredited cameo as an art expert who reduced Van Gogh to tears as he describes his contribution to art in less than 100 words while wearing another stand out bow tie.
Science fiction at its best.
- Prismark10
- Sep 30, 2018
Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Official sites
- Language
- Filming locations
- Trogir, Croatia(Arles)
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
- Runtime47 minutes
- Color
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 16:9 HD