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Plot

A Brief History of Time is based on cosmologist Stephen Hawking's 1988 bestseller of the same name. This anecdotal film concerns itself as much with Hawking's day-to-day life as it does with his unorthodox theories about the universe. Only the most close-minded viewer will be bothered by the ALS-suffering Hawking's physical appearance and his inability to move and speak without assistance (as narrator of the film, he utilizes a voice synthesizer, which he capriciously refers to as "my American accent"). Director Errol Morris inventively adopts a semi-dramatized approach to his interviews with Hawking's friends and relatives: they all appear in fabricated sets, and are lovingly photographed and lit as if they were starring in a film. Though of necessity a "talking heads" effort, A Brief History of Time is also cunningly and subtly cinematic.
MPAA Rating:
G
Genre(s):
Foreign
Run Time:
85min.
Theatrical Release Date:
07/13/1992
Director(s):
Starring:
Themes:
Living With Disability,Obsessive Quests
Tone:
Cerebral,Intimate,Quirky,Reflective,Talky
Keywords:
ALS [Lou Gehrig's Disease],black-hole,cosmology,evolution,genius,life-story,physics,scientific-theory,scientist,time,universe,wheelchair
Country of Origin:
USA (08-21-1992)
Language:
English