"The Theory of Everything"

Title: The Theory of Everything

Director: James Marsh

Writer: Antony McCarten, Jane Hawking (book)

Category: Drama, biography, Romance

Duration: 123 min

Rate: 

Among the many movies that I had the pleasure, and sometimes the displeasure, to watch during the past award season, The Theory of Everything holds a special place in my heart.

I have always been fascinated with Physics, Cosmology, the world and how everything is guided by laws and rules that fit perfectly together, so for this reason I was also intrigued by Stephen Hawking's life and accomplishments. When I saw the trailer of the movie adaptation of Stephen first wife's biography I instantly wanted to see the movie. As many of us know, sometimes trailers can mislead and paint the perfect picture of the movie they are advertising, creating the illusion that this particular film will be the next big success by assembling together all the best moment in a movie that will only be mediocre. Fortunately, it was not the case with The Theory of Everything and after I watched this film, I ended up leaving a piece of my soul with it.

Many people were expecting a biopic focused on Stephen and his many studies and challenges that he had to endure because of his illness, a movie told from his point of view.
However, knowing that it was adapted from Jane's biography, Travelling to Infinity: My Life with Stephen, I expected exactly the kind of movie that I watched.
What makes this film extraordinary is the fact that the story is not only told by dialogues or scenes, but also by the body of the main actor and the changes that he had to bring to life in order to become Stephen. Eddie Redmayne deserved his Oscar nomination and victory because he completely forgot who he really was in order to be this brilliant man that changed history. From the beginning, the movie moves forward like a well choreographed dance. The actors are not just moving, they are dancing with one another. Every single movement is important to show how Stephen's sickness evolved and affected his life and the life of the people who loved him and wanted to be there for him even though he refused to accept the fact that he needed help to live. Every single part of Eddie's body is involved in this process, starting from the way in which he moves his fingers until the small flicker of his eyes. The amount of hard work behind the performance is fantastic and on top of that Eddie was also able to portray the undying humor that characterised Stephen in such a unique way. Since the movie is told from Jane's point of view, we get a brilliant and heartfelt performance from Felicity Jones as well. She held her own supporting Eddie in her difficult role as Jane. She was able to convey all the emotions felt by Stephen's wife throughout the movie. Connecting with them, their love, their struggle and most of all companionship and trust was overwhelming.
Another piece of the puzzle that made this movie special was the Original soundtrack created by Jóhann Jóhannsson. Throughout the film every scene and each moment are accompanied by the soulful notes composed by the Icelandic composer. His ability to portray the emotions through his music was overwhelming and many times I was brought to tears by a single note at the right moment.
All in all, The Theory of Everything can be considered as the perfect example of what it means to create a great movie by combining a talented cast ensemble with good cinematography, a touching script and a killer soundtrack.

Till next time,
Fred

Here the trailer: