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Magician duo Penn and Teller specialise in illusion, so there is a logic of sorts to them dedicating their doc to a Texas inventor’s quest to make a copy of a Johannes Vermeer painting.
Using mirrors, a camera obscura and hundreds of meticulous man-hours, Tim Jenison does indeed craft his own personal simulacrum of ‘The Music Lesson’ that has our own David Hockney aghast.
Whether audiences will be as enraptured is a moot point.
Yet Penn Jillette’s ebullient on-screen presence goes some way towards energising a movie in which we are asked to watch paint dry.
Neil Smith is a freelance film critic who has written for several publications, including Total Film. His bylines can be found at the BBC, Film 4 Independent, Uncut Magazine, SFX Magazine, Heat Magazine, Popcorn, and more.