My considerably lower rating than the others so far may suggest I don't think much of Dali. Not a bit of it. I've been an admirer for over fifty years, and made rewarding pilgrimages to Cadaques, Port Lligat, and the Theatre Museum in Figueres.
The great irony of Salvador Dali is that his showmanship overshadowed a credible claim to be the 20th century's greatest painter, if not one of the all time greats. Anyone could have charged through The Lacemaker carrying a lance, but only Dali , aged fourteen, painted Still Life (1918) which wouldn't have looked out of place in a Vermeer exhibition. Of over a dozen Dali documentaries I've seen, this is the most crazily Dalinian, with only fleeting glimpses of any paintings. It's worth watching, but there are many I prefer which focus more on the paintings.
Possibly the best general documentary is Dali biographer Ian Gibson's 'The Fame and Shame of Salvador Dali' (1997). 'Salvador Dali: In Search of Immortality' (2018) is especially good on Dali architecture and his tempestuous relationship with his father. 'The Dali Adventure' (1991) is the story of Mr and Mrs Morse, Dali's most devoted collectors. The man himself appears only on photographs, and the casual viewer may find it rather dry and talky. For a brief but thorough look at his art, a fourteen minute Y T video of the ultimate Dali coffee table book 'Dali the Paintings by Robert Descharnes and Giles Negret - Book Flip Through'.
It's no coincidence that all worthwhile documentaries are, as far as I know, made after his death. There was no danger of the producers being side tracked into participating in Dalinian happenings. Dali is no longer with us, but his art will forever live on.
