If you are a lover of art or want to learn about it the best place to start is by watching the top films about artists and paintings.
Famous artists in art history have long been a subject for film and literature. Here are the best films about some of the most famous artists and paintings in history.
Pollock (2000)
The is a 2000 film Pollock about American abstract expressionist painter Jackson Pollock. Pollock was active in the United States during the mid 20th century and died early of alcoholism.
- Starring: Ed Harris, Marcia Gay Harden, Tom Bower, Jennifer Connelly, Bud Cort, John Heard, Val Kilmer, Robert Knott, David Leary, Amy Madigan, Sally Murphy, Molly Regan, Stephanie Seymour, Matthew Sussman, Jeffrey Tambor, Sada Thompson, Norbert Weisser
- Directed by: Ed Harris
- Produced By: Peter M. Brant
- Budget: $6,000,000
- Language: English
- Box Office: $10.5 million USD
- Ratings: 80% on Rotten Tomatoes, 7/10 on IMDB, and 3.3/5 on Letterboxd
Mr. Turner (2014)
Mr. Turner is a 2014 film about English Romantic painter J.M.W Turner. Turner was active in the United Kingdom during the 19th Century.
- Starring: Timothy Spall, Dorothy Atkinson, Marion Bailey, Paul Jesson, Lesley Manville & Martin Savage
- Directed By: Mike Leigh
- Produced By: Georgina Lowe
- Budget: £8.4 million
- Box Office: $22.2 million
- Ratings: 97% out of 100 on Rotten Tomatoes, 3.5/4 on Rolling Stone, 6.8/10 on IMDB
Vincent and Theo (1990)
Vincent and Theo is a 1990 Biographical film about Vincent van Gogh and the influence his brother Theo van Gogh, his most loyal financial and emotional supporter, had on his life and times.
- Starring: Tim Roth & Paul Rhys
- Directed By: Robert Altman
- Produced By: Ludi Boeken & David Conroy
- Budget: Unknown
- Box Office: $2.2 million
- Ratings: 89/100 on Rotten Tomatoes, 65/100 on Metacritic & 6.9/10 on IMDB
Paradise Found (2003)
Paradise Found is a 2003 biography film based on Neo-Impressionist artist Paul Gauguin. Gauguin was active in France and Tahiti during the 19th and 20th centuries and is considered to have been an extremely polarising artist.
- Starring: Kiefer Sutherland, Nastassja Kinski & Alun Armstrong
- Directed By: Mario Andreacchio
- Produced By: Mario Andreacchio, Chris Chrisafis, Georges Campana & Frank Hübner
- Budget: A$10,000,000
- Box Office: $5,000
- Ratings: 5.7/10 on IMDb, 3.1/5 on Letterboxd & 5.3/10 on FilmAffinity
Caravaggio (2007)
Words is a biographical television miniseries about polarising Italian Baroque artist Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio
- Starring: Alessio Boni, Elena Sofia Ricci, Jordi Mollà, Claire Keim, Paolo Briguglia, Benjamin Sadler, Sarah Felberbaum, Maurizio Donadoni, Maria Elena Vandone, Luigi Diberti, Ruben Rigillo & Joachim Bißmeier
- Directed By: Angelo Longoni
- Ratings: 6.9/10 on IMDB, 3.4/5 on Letterboxd, and 3/5 on RYM
Frida (2002)
Frida is a 2002 biographical film about the life of Mexican female artist Frida Kahlo, set in Mexico City. It is considered to be one of the top films about artists ever made.
- Starring: Salma Hayek, Alfred Molina, Geoffrey Rush, Valeria Golino, Mía Maestro, Roger Rees, Antonio Banderas & Edward Norton
- Directed By: Julie Taymor
- Produced By: Sarah Green, Salma Hayek, Jay Polstein, Lizz Speed, Nancy Hardin, Lindsay Flickinger & Roberto Sneider
- Budget: $12 million USD
- Box Office: $56.3 million USD
- Ratings: 75/100 on Rotten Tomatoes, 7.4/10 on IMDB & 4.5/5 on Read the Spirit
Loving Vincent (2017)
Loving Vincent is an animated biographical movie about Vincent van Gogh’s life who was active in the 19th and 20th centuries. The film is animated in the style of Van Gogh’s paintings which is extremely unique for a top film about artists.
- Starring: Robert Gulaczyk, Douglas Booth, Jerome Flynn, Saoirse Ronan, Helen McCrory, Chris O’Dowd, John Sessions, Eleanor Tomlinson & Aidan Turner
- Directed By: Dorota Kobiela & Hugh Welchman
- Produced By: Hugh Welchman, Ivan Mactaggart & Sean M. Bobbitt
- Budget: $5.5 million USD
- Box Office: $42.1 million USD
- Ratings: 7.8/10 on IMDB, 84 / 100 on Rotten Tomatoes & 62 out of 100 on Metacritic
Edvard Munch (1974)
1974 biographical film about the life of the Expressionist artist Edvard Munch from Norway who was active in the 20th century titled Edvard Munch.
- Starring: Geir Westby & Gro Fraas
- Directed By: Peter Watkins
- Produced By:
- Budget:
- Box Office:
- Ratings: 8.2/10 on IMDB, 100 / 100 on Rotten Tomatoes & 4.2/5 on Letterboxd
Girl With a Pearl Earring
The 2003 fictionalized drama film Girl with a Pearl Earring is about a woman named Griet who lives with Johannas Vermeer at the time he is painting his famous work Girl with a Pearl Earring. The film is based on a book by Tracy Chevalier.
- Starring: Colin Firth, Scarlett Johansson, Tom Wilkinson, Judy Parfitt, Cillian Murphy, Essie Davis, Joanna Scanlan & Alakina Mann
- Directed By: Peter Webber
- Produced By: Andy Paterson & Anand Tucker
- Budget: £10 million
- Box Office: $31.4 million USD
- Ratings: 73/100 on Rotten Tomatoes, 6.9/10 on IMDB and 3/5 on Common Sense Media
These are the key top films about artists which have been made over the last 30 years however there are many more.