Honestly, I don't know much about art or the people who follow it closely. The internet tells me Craig Ruddy, the central figure here, won the Archibald Prize, though I'm not even sure what that award is. So I watched this as a love letter from Craig's partner of many years, Roberto, put together entirely from his own personal footage. It opens with Roberto talking about how the two of them met, fell for each other, and ended up together before either of them realized it. From there we get a peek into their life, the fancy house, hanging out with friends, parties, get togethers, Craig spending long hours in his studio, how he makes his artwork, which is gorgeous by the way, plus trips around the world and more. My favorite part was just watching Craig create those pieces. Otherwise we hop from one party to the next, or sit in the sun, or hear about renovations on their home. Near the end we learn that Craig has passed away from Covid complications, and that's when a mut...
It opens with Roberto talking about how the two of them met, fell for each other, and ended up together before either of them realized it. From there we get a peek into their life, the fancy house, hanging out with friends, parties, get togethers, Craig spending long hours in his studio, how he makes his artwork, which is gorgeous by the way, plus trips around the world and more. My favorite part was just watching Craig create those pieces. Otherwise we hop from one party to the next, or sit in the sun, or hear about renovations on their home. Near the end we learn that Craig has passed away from Covid complications, and that's when a mutual friend decided to turn all that personal footage into a documentary as a tribute to him. If you're hoping to understand the artist better, you'll probably be let down by the short bursts of scenes that don't connect to each other.
There's no big buildup and no heavy montage of Craig getting sicker. It just catches you off guard. One minute he's there, the next he's gone. And honestly, up to that point I was getting a bit frustrated, because it felt like I was being shown the love story of two successful gay men whose lives were packed with parties, friends, travel, work, big houses, and plenty of love between them. I kept wondering why I was watching two rich guys rub their fancy lifestyle in my face. Having said that, it was absolutely fascinating to watch the artist bring his vision to canvas. So with all the good times and happiness on screen, I never saw where it was heading, and that really surprised me. Putting all those small, personal moments together makes the final scenes a gut punch, a reminder of the loss so many people went through during the pandemic. But if you didn't know anything about these two or the famous artist going in, I do wonder whether you'd end up feeling the same way I did. Overall, a quiet, personal tribute that hits hard at the very end, though it asks you to be patient to get there. (5/10)
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