--- title: "Tim's Vermeer: the reviews" canonical: "https://film.one/film/tims-vermeer/reviews" title_page: "https://film.one/film/tims-vermeer" critics_score: 72 critics_reviews: 18 licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL." --- # Tim's Vermeer (2013): what the critics said Critics' score 72 from 18 reviews: 12 positive, 5 mixed, 1 negative. Most critics find Tim’s Vermeer an engaging, often funny account of Tim Jenison’s attempt to recreate a Vermeer painting. Praise centres on his patience, inventiveness and dry humour, and on filmmaking that makes painstaking technical work accessible. The reviews repeatedly find pleasure in watching the experiment develop, with several also finding it unexpectedly moving. For the more enthusiastic critics, its exploration of art and technology deepens appreciation of the skill involved rather than explaining away the achievement. The reservations concern how much the experiment proves, and how closely the film examines its own claims. Some critics find the larger questions about Vermeer unanswered; others note that the reconstruction eventually loses momentum. The spread is fairly wide, though clearly weighted towards approval. IndieWire questions the lack of a critical voice, while The New Yorker offers the sharpest dissent, finding that a fascinating process becomes a mechanically presented stunt. ## Los Angeles Times — Betsy Sharkey Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 12 December 2013. Sharkey presents the documentary as extraordinary. Its fascinating focus is Tim Jenison’s attempt to recreate a Johannes Vermeer painting. [Read the review](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/movies/moviesnow/la-et-mn-tims-vermeer-review-20131213-story.html) ## IndieWire — Eric Kohn Rating B+. 31 January 2014. Kohn finds the documentary surface-deep but engaging, with Jenison’s creative quest making the journey worthwhile. He praises Jenison’s infectious enthusiasm while faulting the film for lacking a critical voice on its central theory. [Read the review](https://www.indiewire.com/criticism/culture/review-an-inventor-learns-to-paint-but-is-it-art-exploring-tims-vermeer-30599/) ## Evening Standard — The Standard Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 17 January 2014. The critic finds the documentary bizarre, moving and witty, and says it makes viewers reconsider Vermeer’s work. They praise its generous spirit and its exploration of creativity, while singling out Jenison’s detailed recreation of The Music Lesson. [Read the review](https://www.standard.co.uk/culture/film/tims-vermeer-film-review-9066146.html) ## The Hollywood Reporter — Todd McCarthy Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 16 September 2013. McCarthy finds the documentary entertaining and accessible, and sees Jenison’s experiment as making Vermeer’s methods more understandable without diminishing his achievement. He particularly praises the remarkable likeness Jenison creates and the film’s engaging exploration of art and technology. [Read the review](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-reviews/tims-vermeer-film-review-630089/) ## Variety — Peter Debruge Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 2 September 2013. Festival review. Debruge finds the documentary an exceptionally entertaining, lean account of Jenison’s obsessive experiment. He praises its lively presentation of the painstaking recreation, while noting that it leaves the larger questions about art and Vermeer largely unresolved. [Read the review](https://variety.com/2013/film/markets-festivals/telluride-film-review-tims-vermeer-1200596123/) ## Vulture — Bilge Ebiri Fi1m's normalised score 78/100 (inferred from the text). 31 January 2014. Ebiri finds the documentary charming and thoughtful, concluding that its attempt to demystify art leaves viewers with even greater awe. He praises its exploration of how technology and artistic inspiration can work together. [Read the review](https://www.vulture.com/2013/12/movie-review-tims-vermeer-penn-teller.html) ## Empire — Phil de Semlyen Fi1m's normalised score 75/100 (inferred from the text). 16 January 2014. The review finds the documentary enthralling, funny and occasionally maddening, though it loses momentum in its final third. It praises Jenison’s dry humour and a wry David Hockney cameo among the film’s compensatory pleasures. [Read the review](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/tim-vermeer-review/) ## Slant Magazine — Bill Weber Rating 3/4. 19 December 2013. Weber finds the documentary’s investigative quest engaging and its final emotional payoff cathartic. He particularly praises the pleasurable discoveries in Jenison’s detective work and the commitment behind recreating Vermeer’s painting process. [Read the review](https://www.slantmagazine.com/film/tims-vermeer/) ## Screen Daily — Anthony Kaufman Fi1m's normalised score 65/100 (inferred from the text). 6 September 2013. Festival review. The review’s verdict and specific praise or complaint are not visible in the accessible page text. Only the headline and review metadata are available. [Read the review](https://www.screendaily.com/tims-vermeer/5060132.article) ## The New York Times Fi1m's normalised score 65/100 (inferred from the text). The article appears to be a review of the specified film, but its text is inaccessible here. I cannot verify the critic’s verdict or what the review singles out for praise or complaint. [Read the review](https://www.nytimes.com/2014/01/31/movies/tims-vermeer-chronicles-an-attempt-to-make-one.html) ## Film Comment — Nicolas Rapold Fi1m's normalised score 64/100 (inferred from the text). Festival review. The festival dispatch discusses Tim’s Vermeer alongside The Unknown Known, but the available text does not reveal its verdict. No specific praise or complaint about the film is visible in the supplied excerpt. [Read the review](https://www.filmcomment.com/tiff-2013-the-unknown-known-errol-morris-tims-vermeer-penn-and-teller/) ## Time Out — Eric Hynes Rating 3/5. 14 January 2014. The review gives the film a middling three-star rating. Its premise centers on the investigation of Vermeer’s paintings and their uncanny photographic quality. [Read the review](https://www.timeout.com/movies/tims-vermeer) ## The Guardian — Andrew Pulver Fi1m's normalised score 50/100 (inferred from the text). 16 January 2014. Pulver finds the documentary entertaining but ultimately says it reveals little about why Vermeer’s paintings are great. He singles out Jenison’s grim determination as the film shows the arduous work of painting the replica. [Read the review](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2014/jan/16/tims-vermeer-review) ## The New Yorker Fi1m's normalised score 35/100 (inferred from the text). The critic finds the film’s discoveries astonishing but says the movie reduces a fascinating process to a stunt. The film’s brief moments of scientific discovery are singled out for praise, while its rushed, mechanical presentation draws criticism. [Read the review](https://www.newyorker.com/goings-on-about-town/movies/tims-vermeer-2) ## Collider — Phil Brown Rating A-. 6 September 2013. The critic gives the documentary an enthusiastic verdict, calling it funny, moving, and among the year’s best. They especially praise Jenison’s remarkable recreation project and Penn & Teller’s humor and knack for revealing how the apparent trick works. [Read the review](https://collider.com/tims-vermeer-review/) ## Den of Geek — Ryan Lambie Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 3 February 2015. Lambie calls the documentary an essential watch for film geeks and finds its case for artistic ingenuity compelling. He especially praises Tim Jenison’s inventive, painstaking reconstruction and the film’s exploration of art and technology. [Read the review](https://www.denofgeek.com/culture/why-tims-vermeer-is-the-ultimate-geek-documentary/) ## HeyUGuys — Gary Green Rating 4/5. 15 January 2014. Green praises the documentary as a delightful, quietly compelling account of Tim Jenison’s pursuit of Vermeer’s painting methods. He singles out Jenison’s devotion and Teller’s restrained filmmaking for letting the art speak for itself. [Read the review](https://www.heyuguys.com/tims-vermeer-review/) ## The Wrap Fi1m's normalised score 75/100 (inferred from the text). 5 December 2013. The reviewer finds the documentary entertaining and its subject’s artistic quest compelling, though the project and film briefly lose momentum. They particularly praise how Penn and Teller make potentially technical material lively and accessible. [Read the review](https://www.thewrap.com/tims-vermeer-review/) --- © Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Our review: https://film.one/film/tims-vermeer.md