Mr. Turner Review
By David Kempler
Doesn't Turn the Corner
I first became aware of Timothy Spall in Mike Leigh's 1996 "Secrets and Lies". He was one of the highlights in a film that contained an abundance of them. In Mike Leigh's latest, "Mr. Turner", Timothy Spall shines even brighter as the title character.
Joseph Mallord William Turner, was a British painter in the late 1700's and early 1800's. He is most famous for elevating landscape painting into a respected art form. While alive he wasn't thought of quite as highly as his current reputation, even though he was very famous. Today, he is considered a major artist. "Mr. Turner" examines his life, both professionally and personally, specifically the final 25 years of his life.
Turner lives with his loving father (Paul Jesson) and his incredibly devoted housekeeper, Hannah Danby (Dorothy Atkinson). Ms. Danby is also his part-time lover. He constantly gropes her and she loves it. One thing that goes unexplained, as far as I could tell, was the state of Ms. Danby's skin. Early on, it appears fairly normal. By the end, she is a hideous mess. I presume it means something either factual or metaphorical, but its meaning flew past me.
Besides focusing on Turner's career, a lot of attention is paid to the love affair that he had with a woman he met while on vacation. Mrs Booth (Marion Bailey) rented him a room and from that chance meeting, a long-lasting relationship was forged. It is in these scenes that the non-stop gruffness of Turner is replaced by a slightly softer side.
One aspect of Turner's life that is given short shrift is his previous marriage. A couple of times his ex and his children appear to yell at him and he displays no emotion towards any of them, not even caring what tragedies have befallen them. It also seems like these sections have been wedged into the plot.
The primary theme of "Mr. Turner" is an examination of art and art criticism. Particularly, how parts of the art establishment viewed Turner's work as somehow less lofty than other genres of art. Landscape artistry was considered a lower form of art, even though it was acknowledged that Turner was a talented artist.
Spall's performance is by far the best thing here. Everything else spans the spectrum from very good to slightly tedious. If you are an art aficionado, you might love it. For the rest of us, it's not a real page-turner, but it manages to chug along well enough.
