Directed by : James Marsh
Imdb link -> http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2980516/
A biopic of a famous physicist that unfortunately prefers to show his love life rather than achievements.
Spoilers ahead …
Stephen Hawking (Eddie Redmayne), a student of cosmology at Cambridge in 1960’s, falls in love with a art student Jane Wilde (Felicity Jones). But soon its learnt that Stephen is suffering from symptoms of ALS and would not live for more than 2 years. Yet Jane agrees to marry him and thereby go through lots of years of pain and longing for a lover.
When a film is based on a real famous physicist Stephen Hawking, and with a title ‘The Theory of Everything’, what you expect is a very good biopic on his achievements in life with a sub-plot that showcases his love life. But instead this film ends up focussing completely on his two marriages and its struggle and that too in a very disappointing manner.
There’s one scene where Stephen’s roomie recalls him about a particular college work that was supposed to be done, and we see him quickly attempt to do it as he was more of a carefree guy then, cut to scene where he stuns every student including professor with the accurate answers he did. We aren’t told how he got this genius mind, instead we just get to see glimpses of how good he is, whenever director feels like taking a break from Stephen-Jane disaster marriage, like that blackhole speech he gives later on.
What’s disappointing is that the science aspect from Stephen’s POV is so far and few in the movie. Even if for a second you forget his achievements, and see the movie from the angle of the tragedy his life was while with Jane, its almost impossible to have any feelings for her. Because in all her scenes before marriage with Stephen, I never saw that love feel from her side for Stephen. And then all of sudden to see her ready to sacrifice her life for 2 yrs by marrying Stephen because she loved him, had no impact whatsoever. I could feel sorry for Stephen’s declining health year by year, but watching Jane feel probably guilty (over her decision to marry him) or that longing to go away from this tired life that starts and ends at taking good care of Stephen, it didn’t make me feel bad for her. The new love angle only worsened her plot for me.
It would had been ideal if director James tried to show more love from Jane in early part of Stephen’s life when she met him, he rushed too soon to the denial phase. Now I felt that she hardly loved Stephen or tried coping with his health, and gave up too easily. The likable part of Felicity Jones performance was when she tries to take care of Stephen during 1st year of marriage, and the scene where she comes to a realization that no matter how much she tries, the marriage won’t work now.
What keeps me going in this movie is only Eddie Redmayne’s performance, the head tilt mannerisms were perfect, and so was that leg movement, or the smile. I hardly know real Stephen Hawking, but can bet that Eddie brought the character on screen completely with his performance. He makes the scenes where his organs gradually stop working look very uncomfortable to watch, reference to that scene where on his own he goes to college without anyone’s help or climbing stairs of home. Won’t be a surprise if he wins a oscar award.
The movie may work for you if you see it more like a dramedy rather than a biopic, but for me The Theory of Everything would had worked only if it was more a biopic of a physicist with details of his findings and success.
Verdict : 2.5/5
Imdb link -> http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2980516/
A biopic of a famous physicist that unfortunately prefers to show his love life rather than achievements.
Spoilers ahead …
Stephen Hawking (Eddie Redmayne), a student of cosmology at Cambridge in 1960’s, falls in love with a art student Jane Wilde (Felicity Jones). But soon its learnt that Stephen is suffering from symptoms of ALS and would not live for more than 2 years. Yet Jane agrees to marry him and thereby go through lots of years of pain and longing for a lover.
When a film is based on a real famous physicist Stephen Hawking, and with a title ‘The Theory of Everything’, what you expect is a very good biopic on his achievements in life with a sub-plot that showcases his love life. But instead this film ends up focussing completely on his two marriages and its struggle and that too in a very disappointing manner.
There’s one scene where Stephen’s roomie recalls him about a particular college work that was supposed to be done, and we see him quickly attempt to do it as he was more of a carefree guy then, cut to scene where he stuns every student including professor with the accurate answers he did. We aren’t told how he got this genius mind, instead we just get to see glimpses of how good he is, whenever director feels like taking a break from Stephen-Jane disaster marriage, like that blackhole speech he gives later on.
What’s disappointing is that the science aspect from Stephen’s POV is so far and few in the movie. Even if for a second you forget his achievements, and see the movie from the angle of the tragedy his life was while with Jane, its almost impossible to have any feelings for her. Because in all her scenes before marriage with Stephen, I never saw that love feel from her side for Stephen. And then all of sudden to see her ready to sacrifice her life for 2 yrs by marrying Stephen because she loved him, had no impact whatsoever. I could feel sorry for Stephen’s declining health year by year, but watching Jane feel probably guilty (over her decision to marry him) or that longing to go away from this tired life that starts and ends at taking good care of Stephen, it didn’t make me feel bad for her. The new love angle only worsened her plot for me.
It would had been ideal if director James tried to show more love from Jane in early part of Stephen’s life when she met him, he rushed too soon to the denial phase. Now I felt that she hardly loved Stephen or tried coping with his health, and gave up too easily. The likable part of Felicity Jones performance was when she tries to take care of Stephen during 1st year of marriage, and the scene where she comes to a realization that no matter how much she tries, the marriage won’t work now.
What keeps me going in this movie is only Eddie Redmayne’s performance, the head tilt mannerisms were perfect, and so was that leg movement, or the smile. I hardly know real Stephen Hawking, but can bet that Eddie brought the character on screen completely with his performance. He makes the scenes where his organs gradually stop working look very uncomfortable to watch, reference to that scene where on his own he goes to college without anyone’s help or climbing stairs of home. Won’t be a surprise if he wins a oscar award.
The movie may work for you if you see it more like a dramedy rather than a biopic, but for me The Theory of Everything would had worked only if it was more a biopic of a physicist with details of his findings and success.
Verdict : 2.5/5
