The Theory of Everything, Review: A Practical Treat for Everyone

Among the most brilliant theoretical physicists of his era, and maybe since Einstein, Stephen Hawking turned 73 last week. From 1979 to 2009, he held the post of Lucasian Professor at Cambridge, the chair held by Isaac Newton in 1663. Professor Hawking has over a dozen honorary degrees and was awarded the CBE in 1982. He is a fellow of the Royal Society and a Member of the US National Academy of Science. Besides his theories about black holes and about the beginnings of time, he is also seen as a man who survived serious physical and mental hurdles to not only live decades beyond the life expectancy of someone in his condition but to continue his research, research and publishing, and nurse a hope of travelling into outer space. He owed a large part of his come-back and resilience to his wife, Jane, who has penned their ‘autobiography’/memoir, Travelling to Infinity: My Life with Stephen by Jane Hawking. The Theory of Everything is based on that book, adapted for the screen by Anthony McCarten (Death of a Superhero, Show of Hands).

As a young man at school, it was already clear that Stephen Hawking had an exceptional mind. Having won a scholarship to the University of Oxford, his future looked extremely bright. Going on to Cambridge, he meets and falls in love with Jane Wilde, and the two become engaged. Stephen begins to have health problems and discovers he has a debilitating motor neuron disease known as ALS. Given two years to live, he's understandably devastated. As Stephen's health problems become apparent to all, he tries to distance himself from Jane, but Jane insists they get married anyway. She helps him in every way possible, becoming his fulltime care-giver.

Stephen, who authors the bestselling book A Brief History of Time, becomes a renowned astro-physicist. Overwhelmed by her role of mother to two small children as well as being Stephen's only caregiver, when her husband falls ill and the doctor recommends that he be taken off life support, Jane doesn't hesitate when making her decision. Stephen is brought out of coma by a procedure that involves tracheotomy (cutting through his throat) and permanent loss of speech. The Hawkings overcome even this hurdle with the help of a rapid eye scanner, later upgraded with a voice synthesiser, and Stephen continues to win accolades for his research. Yet, somewhere down the line, the couple drift apart, with Stephen developing feelings for his new, professional care-taker, and Jane falling in love with a church choir director, a widower battling depression.

James Marsh (The King, Shadow Dancer) never once lets you feel that this is a biopic, although that is exactly what this docu-feature is, except that it uses actors to re-enact scenes that are more or less true. Since it is so easy to go over-board in a portrayal of a person who is physically ‘twisted’ and unable to speak, it is to his credit that Marsh monitors Eddie Redmayne so precisely. I cannot recall one instance where the actor has over-acted or lost control of his physico-mental dimensions. McCarten employs the familiar but highly effective technique of amalgamating several characters into one screen role, in the case of Stephen’s best friend and that of his caretaker. Of course, it is not possible to avoid jargon and academics when your hero is Stephen Hawking. Yet, to the credit of the writer, it never submerges the proceedings. Once again, the script demonstrates the importance of a strong, realistic narrative story.

Casting is spot on, and one has no problems believing that almost every character represents a real figure, with nobody striking a wrong chord. With tremendously talented Eddie Redmayne (Elizabeth: The Golden Age, My Week with Marilyn, Les Miserables and playing the inter-planetary menace in Jupiter Ascending) and Felicity Jones (The Amazing Spiderman-2) in the lead, the job is more than half done. Redmayne naturally gets all the audience sympathy, for his contortions, labored gait, slurring speech and academic genius, and all of it is extremely well-deserved. But spare a thought for Felicity Jones, who, as Jane, is Stephen’s monument of strength. Endowed with a face that shows traces of Asian features, and eyes that express a cornucopia of emotions, she is one actor to watch. Charlie Cox (Stardust, Hello Carter) as Jonathan, the church choir director, and Maxine Peak (Private Peaceful, Run and Jump, Svengali) as Elaine Mason, the care-taker, are very good. Cox arouses sympathy while Maxine gives just that hint of villainy. Competent support comes for Harry Lloyd, David Thewlis and Simon McBurney.

Rating: ****

Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Salz7uGp72c