Movie Review: The Theory of Everything

Hello! It's been a while since my last post, huh? I was sick for about a month, I guess, but I still had to work every day so I used most of my free time to rest instead of writing. But I'm better now and I saw The Theory of Everything yesterday, so I'll write about what I think of it. This post contains spoilers, but the movie is based on a true story of a well-known figure so you probably have known the story haha.

The Theory of Everything follows the story of Stephen Hawking, a brilliant physicist who is famous for his book entitled A Brief History of Time. As he starts his career as a physicist, young Stephen (Eddie Redmayne) is slammed by the fact that he has motor neuron disease, an illness that slowly decreases his ability to control the movements of his own muscles. It is not easy for Stephen to deal with his situation, but his brilliant mind refuses to stop and keeps working to reach success. Meanwhile, Stephen's wife, Jane (Felicity Jones), seems to struggle to cope with the situation as well as she has to take care of her disabled husband, raise her children and reach her dreams.

Poster of The Theory of Everything

The one aspect that truly shines in this movie is definitely the acting. Eddie Redmayne is totally unrecognizable as Stephen Hawking. I like to watch Eddie's interviews so I'm quite familiar with the way he talks, his voice, his appearance as himself, his accent. But I didn't see those things at all when I saw this movie. In fact, I didn't feel like I was watching Eddie Redmayne. In the movie, the way he talks is different, his voice is different, his physical appearance is different, his accent is different, even the way he moves is different. He looks so thin and vulnerable, and the way he moves his lips and legs makes me cringe because it looks kind of painful. He truly transforms himself into the character that he is portraying. Really fascinating. He deserves an Oscar, or at least an Oscar nomination.

Because all the buzz around this movie centers on Eddie, I was quite surprised to see Felicity Jones's great performance in this movie. I love how she portrays Jane here. She seems very strong and fragile at the same time. The way she plays Jane makes me feel like it is harder for her to deal with Stephen's illness than it is for Stephen himself. My favorite Jane scene is when she visits Stephen after he undergoes a surgery that makes him unable to speak again. Jane visits him in the hospital with a spelling board and tries to teach Stephen how to use it to communicate. Stephen seems to be very devastated because he can't even do a simple thing like speaking, but Jane, even though her hands are shaking and her eyes are wet, tries to be strong and insists that life has not ended for her husband. I think it is a very powerful scene.

Eddie Redmayne and Felicity Jones as Stephen and Jane

For the story, for me it is like a reflection of what I think about marriage and love. At the beginning, Stephen and Jane love each other. Then, they get married and struggle to face their problems as a couple. And, in the end, they figure out that it is better for them to live separate lives. After their separation, they seem to be happier, less tense, less tired. What happens to them makes me think that maybe it is better if we don't get married. I think it is probably better if we let go of the people that we love and let them live in their own paths, let them reach their dreams and be happy. When Jane and Stephen are married, Jane has to leave everything behind (including her dream of getting a master degree) and does nothing but taking care of her husband and her three children. Isn't it unfair for her? When they let go of each other and become friends, Stephen reaches success as a physicist and Jane is able to live for herself. Isn't that better? I'm not saying that you should stop loving whoever it is that you love and forget them. What I'm saying is, if you love someone, maybe it is better to let that person go instead of keeping that person just for you. I believe every person has their own paths and you can't force them to leave their paths to live a new one with you.

To conclude, The Theory of Everything is a great movie that is full of wonderful, powerful performances. Prepare yourself to see Eddie Redmayne and Felicity Jones in every award ceremony in the 2015 awards season!

Rating : 3,5/5