Introduced by Pierre-Auguste Renoir’s great-granddaughter, Sophie Renoir, the documentary Lasting impressions is a beautiful tribute to some of the world’s greatest artists, including Vincent van Gogh, Claude Monet and Edgar Degas. Director Dylan Pearce is a Canadian Screen Award nominee, and Lumière Award-winning director/producer, known primarily for his romance films. Pearce has worked with three-dimensional filmmaking prior to Lasting Impressions, winning the Lumière Award for Director/Producer for his three-dimensional feature film, 40 Below and Falling.
Lasting Impressions is a visually stunning and tasteful homage to the incredible work and artistic style of impressionists. Featuring over 100 works collectively, the documentary highlights pieces from van Gogh, Monet, Renoir and Degas, along with Alfred Sisley, Georges Seurat, Gustave Caillebotte, Paul Cézanne, Henri Fantin-Latour, Paul Gauguin, Édouard Manet, Jean François-Raffaëlli and Henri Rousseau. Among this plethora of artworks are standout pieces such as Monet’s The Water Lily Pond, Degas’ The Dance Class and van Gogh’s The Starry Night.
The introductory statement from Sophie Renoir was a sentimental choice creating a personal connection that echoes throughout the entirety of the film. The appreciation of the artists is established at the very beginning.
The experience itself is immersive in a magical way. The three-dimensional effects and directorial decisions allow viewers to feel as though they are truly inside each artwork. Through animated movement in the paintings – whether a slight motion in the skirts of Degas’ ballet dancers, leaves blowing across Manet’s breathtaking landscapes or the water rippling across Monet’s gorgeous Water Lilies collection – an incredible atmosphere and sense of reality is brought to the paintings. Additionally, the camera pans and scale (thanks to the large screen) allow the Impressionist paintings’ fine brushstrokes to be seen in incredible details – the intensive labour and care put into each painting really apparent through the stroke visibility.
One of the most remarkable aspects of the experience is the music. The choices align perfectly with the artworks being shown and include many spectacular orchestral performances of songs from Claude Debussy, commonly referred to as an ‘Impressionist composer’. The soundtrack includes Don McLean’s emotional classic, ‘Vincent’, sung by Adam Fisher, ‘Non, je ne regrette rien’ by Edith Piaf, ‘Ce Sera Moi’ from Nana Mouskouri, one of the most successful female artists of all time, as well as many more beautifully composed and performed pieces.
One section of the entire film particularly stands out – the tribute to van Gogh, in which the artist’s spectacular paintings, including The Starry Night and many self portraits, are accompanied by Fisher’s cover of ‘Vincent’. This sequence is particularly moving, creating an overpoweringly melancholic atmosphere, with the tragedy of van Gogh’s life juxtaposing the beauty of his artwork.
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Lasting Impressions provides a unique and immersive experience as opposed to viewing these paintings in a typical gallery format. With a 45-minute runtime, the film is the perfect length to be satisfying, without becoming overwhelming. Bringing together the incredible works of so many Impressionist painters, combined with sublime musical compositions and movement within and through the paintings, this is an immersive experience that honours the beauty of these artworks and the artists who created them.
Lasting Impressions
IMAX Melbourne
Director: Dylan Pearce
Producer: Dylan Pearce, Andrew W Scholotiuk, Chase Fullen, Ed Kasses
Executive Producer: Joyce Green, Judson Green, Ed Kasses
Featuring the works of Vincent Van Gogh, Claude Monet, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Edgar Degas, Alfred Sisley, Georges Seurat, Gustave Caillebotte, Paul Cézanne, Henri Fantin-Latour, Paul Gauguin, Edouard Manet, Jean Francois-Raffaelli, Henri Rousseau and Georges Seurat
Lasting Impressions is screening at IMAX until 17 January 2025.