Lawbolisted Powerful

Claysaba Excellent, Without a doubt!!

Stevecorp Don't listen to the negative reviews

Usamah Harvey The film's masterful storytelling did its job. The message was clear. No need to overdo.

GertrudeStern Simon Schama's introduction to Caravaggio -- who he was, what he was doing, how other people felt about that -- is sometimes rudimentary, but truly hypnotic. The hypnosis is only broken when Schama looks closely at a painting (his looking NOT being rudimentary) and says something super gut-busting with his weird cadences and intimacy.For instance, in the Caravaggio ep, Schama dives into The Musicians, a piece featuring a cupid, a boy sadly tuning a stringed thing and baby Caravaggio himself, at the back of what Schama calls "this tight little group". Schama's ensuing analysis of the painting includes the lines "The lead singer is crying his eyes out, and he's just tuning up," and "(intruder) Oh yes, four youths in a closet. Exuse me, so sorry, don't mean to intrude! (tight little group) No no, come on in, darling, pull up a cushion, join us, we're just rehearsing." All of this is said in the most coy VO anyone has ever produced. He calls the painting "fleshy" and "claustrophobic". Really he just crushes it.This series is worth watching for the re-enactments (many, many good re-enactments), but worth suggesting for Schama's magnetism and keen observations. We should probably make sure this is finding the farthest reaches of space. 9/10!Update: I know some viewers are hot and cold on his unfolding of Bernini, but Schama's comments on the folds of The Ecstasy of Saint Teresa ARE enjoyable and that ep. IS dope.Update 2: He calls Rembrandt "Mr. Clever Clogs"!Update 3: Make it to the end of this series and you get to actually watch someone reenact Simon Schama himself as a 20 y/o ruffian staring at a Rothko. This man is a genius.

ignominia-1 I saw 3 episodes of this series, the one on Bernini, Caravaggio and Rothko. The paintings are awesomely lit and Shama's observations are interesting and original but I could definitely go for less dramatization. The repeated shots of the Caravaggio's impersonator panting, sweating while fencing on his own are totally indulgent and don't add much to the story; the actor playing Rothko annoyingly trying to seem intense and interesting; these are unnecessary visuals that cheapen the content of the show. Do the producers think we need to see the artist's lives play-acted to engage us? Do they think their art is not enough for the viewer? I find that this approach is condescending and dumbs down the audience. The art, Shama's commentary and narration of the artist's history would have been excellent enough.

jv-20 Watching a documentary like this one you can't help but think of Schama as a sort of English version of "Carl Sagan" for the artistically curious. Although shot on a relatively big budget for this kind of documentary with an impressive BBC collaboration of cinematography, editing,and writing, subjectivity permeates the entire film. The choice of works is compelling and to his credit Schama does offer deep and powerful insights into the artists and art itself, but his own tastes and biases become apparent the longer you watch. He seems to have a slight disdain for the Italians and the French, and the portrayal of Caravaggio was laughable, thrusting swords repeatedly into the camera like a drugged, hippie freak. And calling Bernini a "bastard" for avenging his mistress and brother without fully explaining the context of the period he lived in is not exactly the professional tone of an art historian. Schama then seems to gush over British Turner and American Rothco unapologetically.The re-enactments were very melodramatic (especially the music) and other performances that were over the top were Van Gogh in particular. All art is indeed subjective but when Schama tries to balance populism and academics the result can sometimes be a little shaky. He glosses over many important stories and works of the artists' lives confidently in search for a truth without admitting the art historian cannot accurately know everything about events that happened long ago. Art doesn't need to necessarily be political or propaganda-driven to be powerful, and anyone who watches this believing these eight works of art are the the most 'powerful' in history (according to Schama) would be hopelessly mistaken. But it is worth watching.

hamlet279 I walked into the Rothko Chapel, on the campus of Rice University in Houston, Texas, one day in 1974, expecting to find less than nothing, just another High Art hoax. My reaction was both overwhelming and totally unexpected. I literally wept, much as I also did years later when I saw the Van Goghs in Munich, and Michaelangelo's "Pieta" in the Vatican.It's a total cliché whenever one meets another painter who's mad about Rothko. Sooner or later, the question of, "Did you cry in the Chapel?" comes up. It's very corny but most of us did shed a tear. You have to see it for yourself, It's quite a rush, the paintings are about 15 feet tall, mostly in blues, browns, and blacks. The emotional impact is quite something, hard to describe, you just have to go there some day and see for yourself. No photograph could ever do it justice.Rothko was a genius and a tragic hero. He sought, and achieved, the expression of an authentic personal spirituality within the then-dominant idiom of Ab-Ex.A painter of tremendous power and sincerity, to whom I am deeply indebted both formally and spiritually.Anyone who's seriously interested in Mark Rothko, and what he was all about, should view Simon Schama's POWER OF ART, disc 3 this was first produced by the BBC in 2006; here's the review from the IMDb.No lie, If you're a fan of Rothko, this video is a must-see. Informative, evocative, and almost unbearable in its emotional intensity. Be forewarned: this is not for the faint-of heart. It's Mark vs the uber-rich, narcissistic NYC art establishment – can you guess who wins? Nevertheless, it's the most accurate and loving tribute to the deeply troubled, painfully sincere, disturbingly self-destructive, humanist that was Mark Rothko.Watch it – you won't be disappointed Old Simon Schama actually "got" Rothko. Not many people do, nor ever did; his brief, meteoric 'success' notwithstanding.The video also includes a lot of Markus Rothkovitch (his original name) – cigarettes, vodka, warts and all – explaining himself.Excruciating and unforgettable; don't take my word for it; just watch the thing – If you have the stomach for it.