Brush With Fate

Based on the Bestselling book by Susan Vreeland, this is an excellent portrayal of the historical passing of an unknown and unseen painting by a famous artist. The author brought the painting's path to life by depicting the owners through centuries of time.'Girl in Hyacinth Blue' was a finalist for Book Sense Book of the Year in 1999. It has become part of the curriculum for many schools and universities. I was privledged to meet the author, Susan Vreeland, and saw this film as a private theater viewing during a literary festival in Dahlonega, Georgia. Vreeland's novels have been translated into 25 languages.In Brush with Fate, the woman who lost the bid for the painting when it was up for auction was 'Magdalena', the girl in the painting and daughter of Vermeer, but now grown and poor. She wished to buy it back, but could not afford it. This is evident in the hard version, but Hallmark edited some scripting to allow for time. Also edited were scenes of the illicit affair to make it more for family viewing.The film was shot entirely in the Netherlands. Although Vermeer was an actual painter, he only painted about 40 canvases. Magdalena was not one of the them, but rather a figment of the author's imagination, and depicted extremely well in the film version. It shows the influence of art upon those who appreciate art.Vreeland focuses on bringing art to life through its alleged history. Her inspiration came after viewing artifacts in a museum and wondering how many hands and lives it went through to get to its current place.According to Vreeland, it was actress Glenn Close who suggested the near-sighted Cornelia to be the eccentric woman she portrayed. In the original book, Cornelia was 'Cornelius', but when the movie was made the producer could not find a suitable man to play the part, thus it was changed to be played by Close.I thought this movie was superb. Excellent cast, excellent script. The author was present and got a standing ovation, after which she took questions and answers.Worthy of purchase. I bought the book.Gail Gupton, author The 31-Day Diet of Spiritual Enlightenment and Seekers of Truth

This was a very good movie, the only thing is, is that you have to watch it twice to really get an understanding on the sequence of where and to whom the painting was passed down. Those sequences can be a bit confusing if your not paying attention. Glenn Close gives a wonderful performance as the spinster Professor with a secret. The twist at the end of the movie took me by surprise. A very informative and educational film on one of the works of Vermeer and what could have possible happened to some of the greatest masterpieces we may never see. I highly recommend this movie to history buffs, art lovers and anyone who likes movies with a bit of a twist at the end.

I saw the movie on TV years ago and bought the book then. Saw the book on my shelf recently and read it and loved it and had to buy the movie. My son showed me how to use the DVD player and we both watched the movie and both loved it. Thank you!

I was startled to see such a mousy-looking Glenn Close, and felt she was playing a secondary role because most of the scenes took place in the past and in Holland, whereas she was only in the present time and in the States. The scenery, in Holland, was spectacular, and the visual effects were the kind I'd expect from a movie but certainly not a TV production. I'm glad I bought the tape.

A totally different movie than I have ever seen. A great cast and a wonderful storyline (although you have to pay attention and perhaps watch over again to really get it--sort of like Joy Luck Club in that respect--several stories going at once)--I was once again amazed at the depth of Glenn Close acting--it is right up there with Skylark and Paradise Road--but this character is not as loveable.

I didn't actually watch my purchase due to it was damaged, but am giving the company five stars for their very prompt refund.... however, I ended up watching the movie later at a friend's, and really enjoyed the movie as well... I love well done historical fiction and this definitely is full of interest.

This DVD was purchased because I had borrowed it from the library and decided it was one I will want to watch again and again. The historical story timeline is intriguing and makes one wonder about the paths many works of art take before they reach their present destination. Love this story.

I enjoyed this movie. It is a great back story of a painting and its life through time

The main focus in this movie is not on a person and his/her story, but on a painting and its story. The story begins with a newly hired art teacher at a prep school meeting a reclusive historian, Cornelia. She reveals to him, because she believes he'll appreciate its value, an unknown Vermeer painting called, "Girl in Hyacinth Blue". She has kept this painting a secret and over many years, and has managed to learn of its history from 1670, when it was painted, until the present.What follows is a series of mini-stories portraying the people who previously owned the painting and how they obtained it. The re-creation of life in the Netherlands over 200 years was very well done. The sets, costumes and performances by most of the actors were well done. I appreciated that the majority of the actors spoke English with an authentic Dutch accent. For the one main actress who was English, the Dutch accent was obviously "put on".I've given four stars to this movie, because overall it was very interesting. However, The storyline which took us back in time from the present left us a little confused. Trying to put the pieces of the transfer of the painting together backwards was challenging. We would have preferred if Cornelia had begun her story at the beginning. We noticed a couple of glitches: The art teacher mentioned that Cornelia hadn't offered information about how she and her father became owners of the painting, so rather reluctantly, she shared how it came about. But there was still an omission in the storyline, because there was no mention of how the painting transferred from the owners in 1880 to the family who owned it before Cornelia did. There was a commentary at times giving information, but the female voice often changed, so it was difficult to know who was speaking.There were scenes in the movie that I wouldn't want my younger children to watch, even though they weren't portrayed in detail. There is some sensuality, a hanging, and a totally unnecessary scene where a young girl kills pigeons. So if I could have, I would give this movie somewhere between 3 and 4 stars, and would recommend it only for teens and adults.

Sconosciuto a gran parte delle persone, è un film che non dovrebbe mancare nelle collezioni dei film d'autore, Semplicemente fantastico, tante storie che si intrecciano nei vari decenni, il quadro della donna in blu dipinto presumibilmente da Vermeer che lascia semplicemente senza fiato. Da vedere e da possedere assolutamente.

A good film, slow but thoughtful and thought provoking. We mainly bought it because Kieran Bew (Adrian Kuypers) is a relative of mine.

Starts unbearably messy. But once they get to Europe it works.

Film intéressant et j adore glenn close méconnaissable ainsi que ellen burnstynMalheureusement je vais devoir racheter ce dvd n ayant vu que les 25 premières minutes car le dvd a un défaut et s est bloque a ce moment la dommage