Sadly I only found this excellent film when transferring a well used VHS copy to DVD for another university lecturer who uses it in her classes - it's tragic that it's only currently available in PAL format abroad, since this well packed 80 minutes is one of the best layman's summations of Hawking's theories (more thoroughly and eminently "readably" gone into in Hawking's book of the same name) together with as nice a companion biography of the man that I can imagine. By leading us through the chronology and the process Hawking went through in arriving at his conclusions, we not only find them but the admirable man himself and the family which he came from far more comprehensible.
This should be aired at least once a year on cable channels as an example - along side Ken Burns admirable work with figures of the past - of how enthralling a documentary on a living subject can be, and be available on a reissued DVD for every college library in the country. Why only 9 our of 10? I wish the film itself were longer and the "Woody Allenish" type on the year cards which index the milestones in Hawking's life and thought were a bit bigger - but these are mere quibbles. The film is both emotionally warm and intellectually wonderful. See it if you can.
This should be aired at least once a year on cable channels as an example - along side Ken Burns admirable work with figures of the past - of how enthralling a documentary on a living subject can be, and be available on a reissued DVD for every college library in the country. Why only 9 our of 10? I wish the film itself were longer and the "Woody Allenish" type on the year cards which index the milestones in Hawking's life and thought were a bit bigger - but these are mere quibbles. The film is both emotionally warm and intellectually wonderful. See it if you can.