Girl with a Pearl Earring (2003)

User Rating:

7.1/10   

Director:

Peter Webber

Writers:

Tracy Chevalier (novel)
Olivia Hetreed (screenplay)

Release Date:

9 January 2004 (USA)

Genre:

Biography | Drama | Romance

Tagline:

He had a vision no one saw as clearly as she. In a house where everything had its place, where every image had meaning, he gave her the power to see the light. She gave him a look that would last forever.....

Plot:

A young peasant maid working in the house of painter Johannes Vermeer becomes his talented assistant and the model for one of his most famous works.

Plot Keywords:

Maid | Painting | Painter | Servant | Paint

Awards:

Nominated for 3 Oscars. Another 12 wins & 34 nominations

Cast

Colin Firth	...	Johannes Vermeer
Scarlett Johansson	...	Griet
Tom Wilkinson	...	Pieter Van Ruijven
Judy Parfitt	...	Maria Thins
Cillian Murphy	...	Pieter
Essie Davis	...	Catharina Bolnes Vermeer
Joanna Scanlan	...	Tanneke
Alakina Mann	...	Cornelia Vermeer
Chris McHallem	...	Griet's Father
Gabrielle Reidy	...	Griet's Mother
Rollo Weeks	...	Frans
Anna Popplewell	...	Maertge
Anaïs Nepper	...	Lisbeth
Melanie Meyfroid	...	Aleydis
Nathan Nepper	...	Johannes

Also Known As:

La jeune fille à la perle (Luxembourg: French title)

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for some sexual content.

Runtime:

100 min

Country:

UK | Luxembourg

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital

Certification:

Iceland:LH | Malaysia:U | Hungary:14 | Czech Republic:12 | South Korea:15 | New Zealand:PG | USA:TV-PG (cable rating) | Australia:PG | Brazil:12 | Finland:K-7 | Germany:6 | Hong Kong:IIA | Italy:T | Netherlands:AL | Norway:11 | Philippines:PG-13 | Singapore:PG | Spain:7 | Sweden:7 | Switzerland:7 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:7 (canton of Vaud) | UK:12A | USA:PG-13

Filming Locations:

Amsterdam, Noord-Holland, Netherlands

Company:

Archer Street Productions

Trivia:

The movie was partially shot on the Venice set that had been built in Luxembourg for Secret Passage (2004). For this movie Venice was modified to become Delft.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: The hands cutting the vegetables at the beginning of the movie are not Scarlett Johansson's hands.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Griet's Mother: Griet! Leave that.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Leverage: The Second David Job (#1.13)" (2009)

A cinematic homage to 17th Century Flemish painters (not just Vermeer). (minor spoilers)

Girl with a Pearl Earring is based on the novel by Tracy Chevalier, who tells the story of a forbidden love affair (pardon the cliché) between painting master, Johannes Vermeer (Colin Firth), and the only woman who seemed to appreciate his work, a timid young maid named Grit (Scarlett Johansson).

Grit is hired to work in the Vermeer household. Had you not known anything about Vermeer prior to viewing the film, it seems as though he is some deformed creature the family wishes to keep secret. The family always linger near the door to Vermeer's studio, as though something dangerous was contained within. And, as the story goes along, you might get the impression that he is a nasty fellow, the way everyone approaches the studio so delicately, careful not to disturb anything. Says one maid to Grit, he doesn't like people bothering him when he is working.

In a way, Johannes is a real bastard to his wife, children, and mother-in-law. As a painter, they're never sure whether he is going to get the commissions from the arrogant, but jolly rich patron Van Ruijven (Tom Wilkinson), or whether they'll be escaping debtors by fleeing in the middle of the night.

Grit is curious, and at the same time, smitten with Johannes Vermeer, probably because of the initial mystery. She gains an interest in Vermeer, and in a way, also becomes his painting apprentice, helping him to mix paints, making creative suggestions about the paintings, and so forth. Vermeer introduces her to a rather different world that Grit has never known. And the two for a silent bond, a love for each other. Johannes appreciate's Grits company as a comfortable contrast to his mother-in-law, children, and especially his wife, he only seem to try to discourage his silly hobbies.

But, Johannes and Grit cannot act on their feelings for each other, at least not aloud. Divorce was highly out of the question, for one thing. But second, Johanne's was dependent on the arrogant Van Rijn for his commissions, and Van Rijn wanted Grit. Disgusted as Johannes may have been, and only slightly able to protect her (you'll see what I mean in the finale), he can't totally reject his financer. Plus, there is the barrier of master and maid, presenting a rigid social structure. And for Grit, she can only play out her affair with Johannes vicariously through her boyfriend, the Butcher.

Even if the story is not grounded in fact, or is based on little fact, the story of how Vermeer's painting, The Girl With a Pearl Earring came to be is one that presents a little mystery and romance to a painting. You can find something to appreciate it, beyond just consideration of the artistic elements of lighting or coloring, etc. In fact, art is always more fun with an intriguing story behind it (consider the controversy behind Whistler's 'Peacock Room').

I thought the movie did a fantastic job of recreating 17th century Netherlands. But what you may not know without having seen many 17 century painting, is that nearly every scene in the movie is constructed from 17 th century paintings, of Vermeers, Frans Halls, Van Dyke, and many others. The entire movie is, as one other viewer coined it, a "cinematic painting," but not just because it is a movie about the beauty of one painting, but because it is a movie entirely constructed from paintings. It was really incredible how precise everything is. Lighting, placement of figures. The actors would have to walk around a room and then at one point, hit their points precisely (props and all) to capture that one moment reflected in the painting from which it was taken from. This is really a great film for the art direction alone.