The story is presented to us very much like a mosaic....many colourful pieces which have to be put together in order to discover the real Goya, official court painter of Spain. Unfortunately many of the pieces are missing.
Sorting through his host of memories, the aging Goya tells his daughter who happens to be interested in art herself about the importance of freedom of expression...to be original and to follow her own path. To have an old sick man narrating the story tends to slow things up and the film at times becomes rather dreary and boring.
However, some of the incidents expressed in his works of art are very interesting and very familiar e.g. the painting of the Duchess of Alba posing as the naked Maja and the execution of the Spanish by the hostile French army under Napoleon.
In the early part of the film (which happens to be rather slow) the theatrical device of using transparent wall with back lighting is effective.
No one can quibble about the overall artistry of the film....the dancing, music, wonderful costumes of the courtiers in their finery and powdered wigs...all very correct for the period.
There were a couple of errors worth noting. When the lightning storm strikes and the windows blow in and Goya goes over to shut them, the curtains cease moving before he actually shuts the windows. And again, if you watch carefully, Goya as a young man paints with his left hand and as an older man paints with his right. Strange, don't you think?
Sorting through his host of memories, the aging Goya tells his daughter who happens to be interested in art herself about the importance of freedom of expression...to be original and to follow her own path. To have an old sick man narrating the story tends to slow things up and the film at times becomes rather dreary and boring.
However, some of the incidents expressed in his works of art are very interesting and very familiar e.g. the painting of the Duchess of Alba posing as the naked Maja and the execution of the Spanish by the hostile French army under Napoleon.
In the early part of the film (which happens to be rather slow) the theatrical device of using transparent wall with back lighting is effective.
No one can quibble about the overall artistry of the film....the dancing, music, wonderful costumes of the courtiers in their finery and powdered wigs...all very correct for the period.
There were a couple of errors worth noting. When the lightning storm strikes and the windows blow in and Goya goes over to shut them, the curtains cease moving before he actually shuts the windows. And again, if you watch carefully, Goya as a young man paints with his left hand and as an older man paints with his right. Strange, don't you think?