← Back to results
Genius
2016 104 min United Kingdom, United States of America PG-13 16+
★6.4
History, Drama
Director: Michael Grandage
📖 Based on the novel
«Max Perkins: Editor of Genius»
byA. Scott Berg
Trailers
Description
New York in the 1920s. Max Perkins, a literary editor is the first to sign such subsequent literary greats as Ernest Hemingway and F. Scott Fitzgerald. When a sprawling, chaotic 1,000-page manuscript by an unknown writer falls into his hands, Perkins is convinced he has discovered a literary genius.
US Gross:
$1.36M
Worldwide:
$5.68M
Starring
Colin Firth
Actor
Jude Law
Actor
Nicole Kidman
Actor
Awards
Goya Awards 2017
— Best European Film
Berlin International Film Festival 2016
— Best Debut
Berlin International Film Festival 2016
— Golden Bear
Key opinion
Genius is a visually polished and well-acted drama that offers a respectful, if occasionally conventional, look at the symbiotic relationship between writer Thomas Wolfe and editor Max Perkins. While the performances are widely praised, critics are divided over the film's narrative momentum and its ability to delve deeply into the psychological complexities of its central figures.
| Acting | Jude Law and Colin Firth anchor the film with powerful, contrasting performances that bring a compelling dynamic to the writer-editor relationship. | |
| Production | The production design successfully immerses the audience in the 1930s with an authentic, evocative atmospheric aesthetic. | |
| Culture | The film acts as an effective, accessible introduction to the lives and works of Thomas Wolfe and his literary contemporaries for uninitiated viewers. | |
| Screenplay | The screenplay is viewed by some as tightly crafted and poignant, while others find it schematic and lacking in the necessary psychological depth for its subject matter. | |
| Pacing | The film's tempo divides opinion, with some finding the pace steady and deliberate, while others perceive it as monotonous or lacking in rhythmic variation. | |
| Direction | The direction is noted for its theatrical, disciplined approach, though critics disagree on whether this creates an intimate focus or results in an overly staged and unadventurous production. |