[brianmcdonough]

I was recruited to work as editor on this project about two years ago. My reason for not taking the job at the time was that it would be hard to make the ending interesting enough to justify the effort. Two years have passed and now that I see the reproduction, I've changed my mind, it was impossible to make the ending interesting enough. Would have made a good magazine article in the Smithsonian though.

"what a sweep of vanity comes this way!" - Shakespeare

[anigbrowl]

That's a pretty cheap shot - I think you owe it both to us and to the participants to say what you think the problem is. As it is, you comment comes off very much as sour grapes.

[brianmcdonough]

Just my humble opinion, but it doesn't matter how the artist achieved the results. The work speaks for itself.

Tim's Vermeer is probably a lot like watching a behind the scenes video. If you enjoy consuming information for information sake, you might find it interesting, but a lot of work and money goes into making a feature documentary and it should be a work of art itself. If it doesn't have broad appeal, it's referred to as a vanity project.

The Cove is a good example of a documentary that is also a work of art. The story has a beginning a middle and an end and they are all made big through the story telling. The same could have been true of Tim's Vermeer if the story was told differently.

I apologize if my original comment came across as negative. I sometimes feel let down if stories are told in lazy or inexperienced ways and the article makes the story play like an episode of this old house.

[tbirdz]

I saw the film and I thought the ending was interesting. What was it about the ending that made you think it was impossible to make interesting?

[brianmcdonough]

Anyone who has seen a Vermeer painting up close, knows how hypnotic the experience can be. Is it true that in the movie Tim never gets to see the original and is reproducing based on a poster?

[samstave]

Are you saying this is all one big ego trip on Tim's part?

[brianmcdonough]

It costs a lot of money to make a film. I don't know Tim and I suspect he's a nice and interesting guy, but movies that lack broad appeal are sometimes referred to as vanity projects. I'd like to know how much money was spent making the film, where that money came from and what the theatrical run took in. If I had that information, I could tell you whether this was a vanity project.