The Theory of Everything

The Theory of Everything

The life of theoretical physicist Stephen Hawking and his relationship with his wife Jane is at the centre of biopic The Theory of Everything.  Stephen Hawking (Eddie Redmayne) is an astrophysics student, who meets Jane Wilde while studying at Cambridge University.  The two quickly hit it off and begin a romantic relationship, but things get complicated when Hawking is diagnosed with motor neuron disease and is given two years to live.  Not wanting to give up on him, Jane is determined to be with Hawking for as long as they possibly can and they get married.  As time goes by, Hawking finishes his thesis and becomes renowned for his theories about time.  However, as the paralyzing disease increasingly impairs Hawking’s ability to live normally, it causes some strain on his relationship with Jane. The Theory of Everything is a film that is based on the memoir “Travelling to Infinity: My Life with Stephen” by Jane Wilde Hawking.  As such, the film tells Stephen Hawking’s life story from the perspective of his relationship with his wife Jane, who would remain by Hawking’s side as he battled motor neuron disease, which got progressively worse as the years went on.  In many ways, it can be argued that Jane is the true protagonist of this story. The biggest acting challenge in the film goes to Eddie Redmayne, who had the task of portraying Hawking at various stages of physical deterioration.  From the initial twitching of fingers to slurring of the voice to full on paralysis, Redmayne had a lot of work on his shoulders.  In fact, the excellent way that Eddie Redmayne portrays Stephen Hawking is probably is probably the biggest thing that I took away from the film. It is hard to say too much more about The Theory of Everything without getting into some aspects of Hawking’s life, and relationship with Jane, which can be considered somewhat spoilerish.  However, it can be said that, as Hawking’s condition gets worse, it causes a bigger strain on his relationship with Jane.  The relationship between the two is undoubtedly the main focal point of the film, even though Felicity Jones might be somewhat overshadowed by Eddie Redmayne’s more physical performance.  The supporting cast of The Theory of Everything includes David Thewlis as Hawking’s Cambridge professor Dennis Sciama and Charlie Cox as Jane’s friend Jonathan Hellyer Jones. Overall, I would say that The Theory of Everything is a decent enough biopic of Jane and Stephen Hawking.  That said, the film is undoubtedly more about Eddie Redmayne’s highly physical performance as Hawking than the actual plot itself.  However, it’s still worth checking out.8 | LIKED IT