The Last Vermeer

The Last Vermeer is a 2019 American drama film directed by Dan Friedkin from a screenplay by John Orloff (under the pen name James McGee), Mark Fergus, and Hawk Ostby. It is based on the 2008 book The Man Who Made Vermeers by Jonathan Lopez, and tells the story of Han van Meegeren (played by Guy Pearce), an art maker who swindles millions of dollars from the Nazis, alongside Dutch Resistance fighter Joseph Piller (Claes Bang).

The Last Vermeer
Theatrical release poster
Directed byDan Friedkin
Screenplay by
Based onThe Man Who Made Vermeers
by Jonathan Lopez
Produced by
  • Ryan Friedkin
  • Dan Friedkin
  • Bradley Thomas
  • Vijay Waghmare
Starring
CinematographyRemi Adefarasin
Edited byVictoria Boydell
Music byJohan Söderqvist
Production
companies
Distributed bySony Pictures Releasing
Release dates
  • August 31, 2019 (2019-08-31) (Telluride)
  • November 20, 2020 (2020-11-20) (United States)
Running time
118 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Box office$683,545[1]

The film had its worldwide release at the Telluride Film Festival on August 31, 2019, and was theatrically released in the United States on November 20, 2020, by Sony Pictures Releasing.

Plot

The Last Vermeer follows "Dutch folk hero Han van Meegeren who swindled millions of dollars from the art world including the Nazis by selling them forgeries of Johannes Vermeer paintings and is considered the most successful art forger of all time."[2] A biography in 1967 estimated that Van Meegeren duped buyers out of more than US$30 million; his victims included the government of the Netherlands.[3][4]

Cast

Production

On April 25, 2018, it was announced that Imperative Entertainment had begun production on Lyrebird, a film directed by Dan Friedkin and produced by Ridley Scott from a screenplay by James McGee, Mark Fergus and Hawk Ostby.[5][2][6][7] The film is Friedkin's directorial debut.[8]

Alongside the film's initial announcement, it was confirmed that Guy Pearce, Claes Bang, Vicky Krieps, and Roland Møller had been cast in film's lead roles.[2] Principal photography for the film was underway by April 2018, taking place in the United Kingdom and Holland.[2] On May 22, 2018, filming took place at Fort Widley in Portsmouth, England.[9] In April and August 2018, filming took place in Dordrecht and Schiedam, Netherlands.

Release

The film had its world premiere at the Telluride Film Festival on August 31, 2019.[10][11] It also screened at the 2019 Toronto International Film Festival on September 11, 2019.[12] Prior to, Sony Pictures Classics acquired distribution rights to the film.[13] It was scheduled to be released on May 22, 2020,[14] but was pulled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[15] It was then released on November 20, 2020, with TriStar Pictures distributing instead of Sony Pictures Classics.[16]

Reception

Box office

The film made $1,225,000 from 1912 theaters in its opening weekend.[17]

Critical response

On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 70% based on 79 reviews, with an average rating of 6.4/10. The website's critics consensus reads: "Led by a skilled performance from Guy Pearce, The Last Vermeer derives diverting drama from its historically inspired wartime story."[18] On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 56 out of 100, based on 15 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".[19] Audiences polled by PostTrak gave the film an average 4 out of 5 stars.[17]

References
  1. "The Last Vermeer (2020)". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved December 24, 2020.
  2. Fleming, Mike Jr. (April 25, 2018). "Guy Pearce Stars & Imperative's Dan Friedkin Directs 'Lyrebird', About Art Forger Whose Paintings Duped Nazis". Deadline. Retrieved April 25, 2018.
  3. Equivalent of the total amount in dollars stated by Kilbracken in Appendix II, a biography published in 1967.
  4. "Calculate the Value of $30 in 1967. How much is it worth today?".
  5. Barfield, Charles (February 27, 2020). "'The Last Vermeer' Trailer: Claes Bang, Vicky Krieps & Guy Pearce Star In This Post-WWII Thriller". The Playlist. Retrieved July 30, 2020.
  6. Kroll, Justin (April 25, 2018). "Guy Pearce, Claes Bang, Vicky Krieps and Roland Moller Join Imperative's 'Lyrebird'". Variety. Retrieved April 25, 2018.
  7. "Guy Pearce, 'Phantom Thread' Star Vicky Krieps Board Art Forgery Drama 'Lyrebird'". The Hollywood Reporter. April 25, 2018. Retrieved April 25, 2018.
  8. "The Last Vermeer". SFFilm. Retrieved October 31, 2020.
  9. Salkeld, Millie (May 22, 2018). "Portsmouth road closed due to filming for Ridley Scott movie". The News. Retrieved May 22, 2018.
  10. Hammond, Pete (August 29, 2019). "Telluride Film Festival: 'Ford V Ferrari', 'Judy', 'Motherless Brooklyn', Weinstein-Inspired Drama 'The Assistant' Among Premieres Headed To 46th Edition – Full List". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved August 29, 2019.
  11. "Telluride Program Guide" (PDF). Retrieved August 29, 2019.
  12. "Lyrebird". Toronto International Film Festival. Retrieved August 29, 2019.
  13. Fleming, Mike Jr. (September 11, 2019). "Toronto: Sony Pictures Classics Taking North America + On Dan Friedkin-Directed Post-WWII Drama 'Lyrebird'". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved September 11, 2019.
  14. Billington, Alex (February 27, 2020). "Claes Bang & Vicky Krieps in First Trailer for 'The Last Vermeer' Film". FirstShowing.net. Retrieved February 27, 2020.
  15. "Sony Classics knows the right way to date films in the midst of a pandemic: THE LAST VERMEER (TBA) I CARRY YOU WITH ME (TBA) THE HUMAN FACTOR (TBA)". Twitter. March 27, 2020. Retrieved March 27, 2020.
  16. N'Duka, Amanda (October 22, 2020). "Sony Dates Guy Pearce Crime Drama 'The Last Vermeer', Releases New Trailer". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved November 4, 2020.
  17. D'Alessandro, Anthony (November 22, 2020). "'Freaky' Leads & Jackie Chan's 'Vanguard' Tries To Throw A Punch During A Truly Depressed Box Office Weekend". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved November 22, 2020.
  18. "The Last Vermeer (2019)". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango. Retrieved October 10, 2021.
  19. "The Last Vermeer Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved December 2, 2020.
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