The Theory of Everything (2014)

A look at the relationship between the famous physicist Stephen Hawking and his wife.

Director:

James Marsh

Writers:

Anthony McCarten (screenplay), Jane Hawking (book)

Stars:

Eddie Redmayne, Felicity Jones, Tom Prior

Won 1 Oscar. Another 24 wins & 121 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Eddie Redmayne	...	Stephen Hawking
Felicity Jones	...	Jane Hawking
Tom Prior	...	Robert Hawking - Age 17
Sophie Perry	...	Lucy Hawking - Age 14
Finlay Wright-Stephens	...	Timothy Hawking - Age 8
Harry Lloyd	...	Brian
Alice Orr-Ewing	...	Diana King
David Thewlis	...	Dennis Sciama
Thomas Morrison	...	Carter
Michael Marcus	...	Ellis
Gruffudd Glyn	...	Rees
Paul Longley	...	Barman - Rowing Club
Emily Watson	...	Beryl Wilde
Guy Oliver-Watts	...	George Wilde
Simon McBurney	...	Frank Hawking

Storyline

The Theory of Everything is the story of the most brilliant and celebrated physicist of our time, Stephen Hawking, and Jane Wilde the arts student he fell in love with whilst studying at Cambridge in the 1960s. Little was expected from Stephen Hawking, a bright but shiftless student of cosmology, given just two years to live following the diagnosis of a fatal illness at 21 years of age. He became galvanized, however, by the love of fellow Cambridge student, Jane Wilde, and he went on to be called the successor to Einstein, as well as a husband and father to their three children. Over the course of their marriage as Stephen's body collapsed and his academic renown soared, fault lines were exposed that tested the lineaments of their relationship and dramatically altered the course of both of their lives.

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Plot Keywords:

cambridge university | husband wife relationship | lou gehrig's disease | physicist | based on memoir | 

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Taglines:

His mind changed our world. Her love changed his.

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Genres:

Biography | Drama | Romance

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for some thematic elements and suggestive material

Details

Official Sites:

Official site [United Kingdom] Official site [Japan]

Country:

UK Japan USA

Language:

English French

Release Date:

26 November 2014 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Theory of Everything

Filming Locations:

Cambridge, Cambridgeshire, England, UK

Box Office

Budget:

$15,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$208,763, 7 November 2014, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$35,893,537

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$123,726,688

Company Credits

Production Co:

Working Title Films, Dentsu Motion Pictures, Fuji Television Network

Technical Specs

Runtime:

123 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.40 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

In addition to his copyrighted voice, Stephen Hawking also lent the filmmakers his Companion of Honour medal and his signed thesis to use as genuine props in the film.

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Goofs

(at around 25 mins) The doctor tells Stephen that he has motor neurone disease "that destroys the cells in the brain - that control motor function -." At 26 minutes, the doctor says "the brain isn't affected." Actually, the disease destroys motor neurons in the brainstem and spinal cord, but not in the cerebrum.

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Quotes

Woman: [question from the audience] Now you are recognized everywhere. How do you deal with all the attention?
Stephen Hawking: [speaking through his computer] I was stopped recently by a tourist in Cambridge, who asked if I was the real Stephen Hawking. I replied I was not, and said the real one was much better looking.
Man: In 1979, you talked about the possibility of a theory of everything being discovered before the end of the century.
Stephen Hawking: I now predict that I was wrong.

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Connections

References 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)

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Soundtracks

Take Me Away
Written by Steve Dudas (as Dudas), Mark Hart (as Hart)
Courtesy of The Extreme Music Library

User Reviews

Excellent, but not Cliff Notes on Quantum Mechanics

I've read scientists are turned off by this film for its omissions, simplifications, falsities, and other failures to explain Prof. Hawking's theories. I can understand that, being a law specialist who can't watch law dramas. But if you're not a cosmologist or a physicist you should not be discouraged by the film's failure to give you enough detail for a two credit course. It's a good drama of people, a bit schmaltzy as befits the facts, and in that regard I understand it's pretty accurate, and is definitely well acted and directed. Also a nice glimpse of what Oxbridge life was like in the 1950s. As they say, the male lead is Oscar bait.