The Dutch Masters, such as Johannes Vermeer, who were hired as painters in the 17th century, were known for their magnificent attention to detail. It has been widely speculated that they made use of such a camera, but the extent of their use by artists at this period remains a matter of considerable controversy, recently revived by the Hockney-Falco thesis. The term "camera obscura" was first used by the German astronomer Johannes Kepler in 1604

I am watching a movie; Girl with a Pearl Earring. It seems that Jan Vermeer was a Dutch Master in the mid 17th century and he painted many wonderful pieces; the most important being the Girl.

I love reviewing the Dutch Masters. I had many coffee books once upon a time focusing on these masterpieces.

On the advice of Victor de Stuers, who for years tried to prevent Vermeer's rare works from being sold to parties abroad, A.A. des Tombe purchased the work at an auction in The Hague in 1881 for only two guilders and thirty cents. At the time, its condition was very bad. Des Tombe had no heirs and donated this and other paintings to the Mauritshuis in 1902.[3]

I love irony. I mean two hundred years following the completion of the masterpiece it is sold for two guilders. Ha

A lady by the name of Tracy Chevalier wrote a book entitled the Girl with a Pearl Earring. It was published in 1999 and is a fictional account of the events surrounding the painting of this portrait.  This wonderful novel was turned into a film, a film I see as a masterpiece; a cinematic masterpiece. And I will tell you why I think this is so even though I have no expertise in art history; 17th century Dutch Art; artsy movies or even Holland.

The movie is about a painting. The movie is about paintings. The movie is about how 'masters' painted way back when. But the movie is really a moving painting. Scenes are set as if taken from 17th century Dutch paintings; one after another after another...seemingly going on forever.

The 'action' takes place in the town of Delft in the Netherlands.  The town is strewn with canals reminding one of Venice.

And it matters not if the scene is in the fields serving as a background to this town, or on the streets, or in the quaint residences, or even upon the water. It matters not if the scene is outside in full sunlight, or in a darkened room. I swear there is one painting after another painting and the director is both a genius and an art historian with a lot of patience.

The costumes overwhelm me. The smoking man in our Café could fit right into several scenes.

The lighting is marvelous. The colors are marvelous. The framing of each scene is marvelous.

The acting is stilted...on purpose. The 'stilting' aids in the director's framing of each scene. The stilting aids in underlining the class consciousness of the era and the place.

The plots are only incidental really. Vermeer is attempting to lure a rich merchant into commissioning a painting. Vermeer's wife wishes to be the subject of the painting.

The film focuses on the goings on in Jan Vermeer's household;  which becomes the main stage so to speak, for the movement of the characters. Jan Vermeer is present in the guise of Colin Firth, one of my favorite English Actors who downplays everything under the strict discipline of the director no doubt.

The main role in this film, the centerpiece of the film is as it should be; the virgin servant girl who is the subject of the painting.  Our Dutch Master is married and has two daughters but the real mistress of the household is the mother-in-law; the dictator of the household. The butcher boy appears to be the girl's future due to kisses shown in the field, and introductions to her parents.  Vermeer's wife begins to grow suspicious of the servant girl because of the intense gaze and concern of Vermeer. The younger daughter brat does all she can to libel and slander the virgin.  Oh, and the Mistress of the House is stunning. She smokes a pipe and runs a tsarist house. ha

Scarlett Johansson IS THE GIRL WITH A PEARL EARRING. I do not know how better to put it.

But if one had the inclination as well as the proper tools, he could map this movie into a thousand paintings...demonstrating exactly where the director found his scenes. Even the attempted rape scene whereby the licentious Merchant seeks to have his way with the virgin is from a masterpiece that I know I have seen but cannot recall as to title or author. And it is shot through a glass darkly.

This is one of Vermeer's paintings called The Milkmaid. You will see this scene in the movie. The subject becomes the second servant in the Vermeer household for the purposes of the film. And I mean the scene is EXACT as far as this painting is concerned.

Oh and the lines.

My ears are not pierced says the virgin servant girl. You cannot find lines like that just lying around.

You do not even know how to read, the wife says to the virgin.

The Dutch Master teaches the girl about colors and mixing ingredients to manufacture the paint; all accomplished in his make shift lab. It seems to take forever for the painter to gain her confidence as a model. This underlines a fact I never really pondered before. Of course there were/are many instances where there is a relationship between painter and the model. I mean I am not stupid. Picasso painted his wives and mistresses.

Finally, Vermeer talks the girl into letting him pierce her left ear. And there is a pose that follows the surgery where I swear to god Scarlett just steps out of this seventeenth century painting.

And it is only after her ear is pierced that she reaches her first orgasm with the butcher boy and with her borrowed pearl earring in place.  And this 'feat accompli' is had at the stables. A remarkable scene really.

I have seen directors frame their movies before. But nothing like this.

I just have never seen a thousand 'paintings' in one movie before. Do what I did. Watch it and then watch it again with the sound off.

The inspiration for this critique came from a recent post by

Zip and this movie I just happened upon. 

Oh Bwak gave me this gem tonight. It is the ten most important minutes of the film that certainly clarifies what has grabbed me in this cinematic masterpiece:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=weH7H-qIzDk&

feature=player_embedded