Enter the mind of a genius.. (A Beautiful Mind (DVD))

Member Name: indychick_uk

Product:	A Beautiful Mind (DVD)
Date:	28/02/02 (137 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: strong cast, well photographed, engaging story

Disadvantages: may not get the exposure ti deserves because many may be put off by the subject matter

According to the official blurb about this film it is "inspired by events in the life of John Forbes Nash, based in part on the biography A Beautiful Mind by Sylvia Nasar"
so, first, the facts.


John Nash - the reality

John Forbes Nash was only 21 and at Princeton when he made an astonishing mathematical discovery and stood on the brink of international acclaim. This wasn't to be, however, as his genius was undermined by the onset of schizophrenia.

Nash appears, like many geniuses, to have been an eccentric character, awkward in social situations and this may have led to his disease going undiagnosed for many years.

He fought back against the disease and, with the help of his wife Alicia, he achieved something of a triumph over tragedy and was finally awarded the Nobel Prize in 1994.

Nash's "truly original idea" was game theory, the mathematics of competition, and at the time it was highly controversial - contradicting Adam Smith and sweeping away 150 years of economic theory. Game Theory now underpins much of the economics of the world. The basic theory is that in order for a group to succeed the members must work to achieve both their own personal goals and also the goals of the group.


John Nash - the dramatisation

The film starts in 1947 with Nash arriving at Princeton in a highly competitive environment arising from the scientific and mathematical successes achieved during the Second World War. It follows his struggle to find one "truly original idea". He believes that making this discovery is the only thing which will make his life matter.

He succeeds and is awarded with a prestigious research and teaching post at MIT, where he meets his wife, Alicia, and embarks on what should have been a noted academic life. He becomes frustrated with the routine work he is given and yearns to do more to help his country fight in the Cold War which is lo
oming large in thh early fifties.

His wish is granted when he is "headhunted" to take part in a covert code-breaking project for a shady government agent, played by Ed Harris. The stress of the covert nature of his work makes Nash more and more secretive and finally paranoid schizophrenia takes over.

Throughout this, Alicia has to watch the man she loves disappear into his delusional world but she can still see glimpses of the man she loves and that love provides the support Nash needs to fight his illness. At one point she is asked how she is coping and she replies that she feels guilt at wanting to leave but then she looks at him and suddenly he is transformed into the man she married and she is transformed into someone who loves that man.

Although not mentioned in the film, they did separate for a time but remarried more recently and still live together.

The brilliance of this film is that it really does take you "inside the mind of a genius" and consequently you feel some of the shock of realisation as Nash comes to terms with the fact that he is ill. It's difficult to praise this aspect of the film without disclosing too much but suffice to say you see the world through Nash's eyes and, I feel, learn a little about the pain of schizophrenia.

Russell Crowe portrays Nash brilliantly, he is fully deserving of the Oscar nomination and, if he does not receive it and is remembered for Gladiator then it will be a travesty. He is a towering presence on the screen but also, somehow, portrays humility and awkwardness. Jennifer Connelly is also wonderful and is a quiet, calm prop to Crowe throughout the film. Ed Harris as Parcher is the consummate "Man in Black", emerging from the shadows on every corner.

I went into this film with a completely open mind, my husband had read Sylvia Nasar's book but I hadn't. We were both thoroughly entertained and entranced by the movie.
It is funny, poignant and dramatic but, ultimately, the film is about the strength of the human mind and the endurance of love.

The Details

Director - Ron Howard
Producer - Brian Grazer

Stars - Russell Corwe (John F Nash), Ed Harris (Parcher), Jennifer Connelly (Alicia Nash), Paul Bettany (Charles Herman)

Running time - just over two hours

Summary: