Tim's Vermeer

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Tim's Vermeer

PG-13

2014

1h 20m

Documentary

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Popcornmeter

91%

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117 Reviews

86%

Popcornmeter

5,000+ Ratings

Inventor Tim Jenison conducts experiments to discover how 17th-century Dutch Master Johannes Vermeer achieved such photographic realism in his paintings.

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Critics Consensus

Entertaining and profound in equal measure, Tim's Vermeer uses its seemingly esoteric subject to pose fascinating questions about art and obsession.

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Larushka Ivan-Zadeh

metro.co.uk

Sep 6, 2017

3/5

As a portrait of one man's all-consuming persistence alone, it's astonishing.

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Eddie Cockrell

The Australian

Jul 9, 2014

4/5

Perhaps the ultimate take-away from Tim's Vermeer is the unquenchable curiosity of certain people, albeit those with the money to finance that inquisitiveness, to get to the bottom of history's mysteries. In that respect, Jenison is an artist.

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Marc Savlov

Austin Chronicle

Mar 20, 2014

3/5

It's obvious in hindsight why Penn and Teller would be so drawn to this ethereally beautiful mystery: Their passion for all things seemingly magical, often mechanical, and always amazing is practically their trademark.

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Michael Clark

Epoch Times

Apr 17, 2024

4/5

It's “The Da Vinci Code” minus all of the abject religious hyperbole and superfluous flummery, with more authentic and organic drama. It’s for people who like to get into the heads of complicated, creative people, and figure out what makes them tick.

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Richard Crouse

Richard Crouse

Feb 1, 2021

4/5

The technical nuts and bolts of Jenison's theory are playfully presented and fascinating but the real appeal here is the personal story of the eccentric inventor's obsession and determination.

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Joanne Laurier

World Socialist Web Site

Aug 13, 2020

Tim's Vermeer is, just that, Tim Jenison's "Vermeer." In fact, the movie is not about Vermeer. It is about Tim Jenison-a fascinating and unusual subject...

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Jane C

@JaneConquest Sep 11, 2026

One of the best documentaries ever created. Changed the course of history

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Georgan G

@RT98616417 Aug 10, 2023

Interesting from several perspectives: art history, Tim's obsession to do this project, and whether Vermeer used the same tools. I did get cross-eyed from watching Tim doing such tiny work.

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John H

@Skyraider Jun 19, 2023

I heartily agree with the other critics. Documentaries can be difficult to digest at times. This one was a thorough pleasure. Sounds gory, but it was like picking Vermeer's brain. He's been dead a long time. Nicely put together. Like watching a beautiful, intricate puzzle come together before your very eyes. Thank you, Tim Jenison.

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Simon T

@MovieTart Mar 10, 2020

The elephant in the room here is that - even after the years of experimenting and researching and months of intricate painting - it's very obvious that Tim Jenison's no artist. His photo-exact reproduction of Vermeer's The Music Room ultimately seems rather pointless, and - as I'm sure he'd admit - doesn't address the fact that Vermeer was still a great artist, with or without the use of lenses and mirrors. One can understand Penn & Teller's desire to showcase their friend's journey, but the finished film is actually pretty tedious, except when it's given over to the art experts and scientists. David Hockney is an especially welcome contributor.

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Oct 21, 2019

Heavily flawed ideas about art. Under drawings are not always necessary, and Vermeer worked with glazes. Thus, he had an underpainting. This has been proven w/ forensics, but the facts were ignored so this documentary could posit that a master painter of the Baroque period was some kind of "cheater". Tim's version is a crap imitation and looks like somebody did a paint by number version of the Vermeer. No detail, just smudges.

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Feb 23, 2018

It has been a long time since someone else's obsession and infatution with something has become one of my own. Tim's Vermeer did exactly that. It not only captures one man's extreme desire to solve what seems to the rest of the art world as an unsolvable mystery. But the amount of dedication one person can have when an obsession takes over. I will be recommending this documentary to anyone interested in domcumetary format until the day I die.

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Teller

Director

Tim Jenison

Self

Teller

Writer

Penn Jillette

Writer

Penn Jillette

Producer

Farley Ziegler

Producer

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Synopsis

Inventor Tim Jenison conducts experiments to discover how 17th-century Dutch Master Johannes Vermeer achieved such photographic realism in his paintings.

Director: Teller
Producer: Penn Jillette, Farley Ziegler
Screenwriter: Teller, Penn Jillette
Distributor: Sony Pictures Classics
Production Co: Sony Pictures Classics, High Delft Pictures
Rating: PG-13 (Some Strong Language)
Genre: Documentary
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Jan 31, 2014, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Jun 10, 2014
Box Office (Gross USA): $1.7M
Runtime: 1h 20m

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