The Current War: Director's Cut (2017)

The dramatic story of the cutthroat race between electricity titans Thomas Edison and George Westinghouse to determine whose electrical system would power the modern world.

Director:

Alfonso Gomez-Rejon

Writer:

Michael Mitnick

Stars:

Benedict Cumberbatch, Oliver Powell, Katherine Waterston

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Benedict Cumberbatch	...	Thomas Edison
Oliver Powell	...	Leo
Katherine Waterston	...	Marguerite Westinghouse
Nancy Crane	...	Gladys
Liza Ross	...	Beti
Tim Steed	...	Maurice Manesburg
Michael Shannon	...	George Westinghouse
David Morley Hale	...	Frederick Worthington
Amy Marston	...	Annabelle Worthington
Robert Jezek	...	Mr. Faulk
Abigail Johns	...	Emily Faulk
Tom Bell	...	Reverend Vincent
Giles Terera	...	Elijah McCoy
Samuel Dutton	...	Mr. Burton
Stanley Townsend	...	Franklin Pope

Storyline

Three brilliant visionaries set off in a charged battle for the future in The Current War, the epic story of the cutthroat competition that literally lit up the modern world. Benedict Cumberbatch is Thomas Edison, the celebrity inventor on the verge of bringing electricity to Manhattan with his radical new DC technology. On the eve of triumph, his plans are upended by charismatic businessman George Westinghouse (Michael Shannon), who believes he and his partner, the upstart genius Nikola Tesla (Nicholas Hoult), have a superior idea for how to rapidly electrify America: with AC current. As Edison and Westinghouse grapple for who will power the nation, they spark one of the first and greatest corporate feuds in American history, establishing for future Titans of Industry the need to break all the rules. Directed by Alfonso Gomez-Rejon (Me and Earl and the Dying Girl) with Producer Timur Bekmambetov, Basil Iwanyk and Executive Producer Martin Scorsese, The Current War also stars ...

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Plot Keywords:

lens flare | world's fair | 1893 columbian exposition | chicago illinois | based on true story | 

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Taglines:

Inspired by True Events

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Genres:

Biography | Drama | History

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for some violent content and thematic elements

Did You Know?

Trivia

Sienna Miller was considered for a lead role in the early stages of the project.

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Goofs

The film is set in a time period spanning the 1880s and 1890s. Maps shown in the film show the states of Utah, Oklahoma, New Mexico, and Arizona, which didn't become a state until between 1896 and 1912.

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Quotes

Franklin Pope: The good thing about Edison is that he could be the richest man in the world, but he doesn't give a damn about money.
George Westinghouse: What does he give a damn about?

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Alternate Versions

The music of the original cut (by Volker Bertelmann aka Hausckha and Dustin O'Halloran) has been replaced in the director's cut by a new score by Danny Bensi and Saunder Jurriaans

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Connections

Featured in The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon: Benedict Cumberbatch/Savannah Guthrie/Andy Grammer feat. Lunchmoney Lewis (2017)

User Reviews

Cinema vs History

I, like many, am convinced that had Tesla's final years and works not gone "missing" from room 3327 the world would be an entirely different place. What would a world where electricity was not an expensive resource but an economically available human right look like? No wars for or dependency upon oil, little pollution, and this had been available to us 80yrs ago, before WW2.

This movie does not reflect on the possibility of that world or focus much attention upon the perhaps the greatest genius of the three main protagonists that are the subject of the movie.

Many of the reviews here are critical of the lack of focus on Tesla. But there is a fundamental question we must consider here: does a movie fail to entertain because we disagree with the accuracy of facts within?

Are we rating this movie solely on historical accuracy? If so, we need to be wary. History is our perception of what occurred based upon the slanted perceptions of those who recorded those events. And even then only a tiny fraction of the events over decades combined of these mens lives are presented in just over 100 minutes. How much accuracy can one truly expect? This is a movie intended to entertain, not a scientific journal.

Or should we acknowledge the director chose to entertain us within the aesthetic of a compelling story told in costume, on sets, by actors with fabricated dialogue, in such a way as to grip our attention and spark our emotions?

My rating is on the latter. Wonderfully acted by the two main leads with a stellar supporting cast, an excellent score, and a flawless look with excellent editing.

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook Official Instagram

Country:

USA Russia UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

25 October 2019 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Current War: Director's Cut

Filming Locations:

Waltham Abbey, Essex, England, UK

Box Office

Budget:

$30,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$2,633,717, 27 October 2019

Gross USA:

$5,979,540

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$11,662,493

Company Credits

Production Co:

Bazelevs Production, Film Rites, FlightAV.com

Technical Specs

Runtime:

108 min

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.39 : 1