I was a bit skeptical about this episode before watching. Written by Richard Curtis - so perhaps some kind of Brit Rom Com type approach. Or, perhaps - a Black Adder kind of approach would be taken.
I was more than pleasantly surprised.
The bad points, the 'monster' - well, lets just admit it - it's invisible for budgetary reasons. And when you can see it - well, it looks a bit like it was drawn by a 10 year old! The good points, I'm really liking Matt Smith as the Doctor - I like the references to previous incarnations (William Hartnell and Patrick Troughton this week). I like the way he is quirky, in ways that make me reminiscent of Jon Pertwee and Tom Baker. I like the fact he plays the Doctor as such a pragmatic but insightful soul.
I thought the story with Vincent Van Gough worked really, really well. I've visited the asylum in Saint-Rémy-de-Provence, near Arles where Van Gough stayed for a year just prior to his death, and whilst the episode isn't a factual historical reference to how he was as an individual - I think that Tony Curran's acting really conveyed his mental anguish.
The final scenes when Van Gough was taken to the the Musée d'Orsay in Paris - and shown how much respect there was for his work, was fantastically acted by all (Tony Curran, Bill Nighy, Matt Smith and Karen Gillen).
After Vincent was taken back from Arles, and The Doctor and Amy went back to the museum - my 8 year old asked 'Will Van Gough Die?'.
The most impressive part of the episode for me, was the way a UK TV show, mainly aimed at children didn't skirt around the issue of mental illness - which purveyed Van Goughs life. And as part of the program - showed that no matter what to you try to do for some people, sometimes it won't change their life entirely.
I was more than pleasantly surprised.
The bad points, the 'monster' - well, lets just admit it - it's invisible for budgetary reasons. And when you can see it - well, it looks a bit like it was drawn by a 10 year old! The good points, I'm really liking Matt Smith as the Doctor - I like the references to previous incarnations (William Hartnell and Patrick Troughton this week). I like the way he is quirky, in ways that make me reminiscent of Jon Pertwee and Tom Baker. I like the fact he plays the Doctor as such a pragmatic but insightful soul.
I thought the story with Vincent Van Gough worked really, really well. I've visited the asylum in Saint-Rémy-de-Provence, near Arles where Van Gough stayed for a year just prior to his death, and whilst the episode isn't a factual historical reference to how he was as an individual - I think that Tony Curran's acting really conveyed his mental anguish.
The final scenes when Van Gough was taken to the the Musée d'Orsay in Paris - and shown how much respect there was for his work, was fantastically acted by all (Tony Curran, Bill Nighy, Matt Smith and Karen Gillen).
After Vincent was taken back from Arles, and The Doctor and Amy went back to the museum - my 8 year old asked 'Will Van Gough Die?'.
The most impressive part of the episode for me, was the way a UK TV show, mainly aimed at children didn't skirt around the issue of mental illness - which purveyed Van Goughs life. And as part of the program - showed that no matter what to you try to do for some people, sometimes it won't change their life entirely.