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Radioactive
2020 111 min France, United Kingdom PG-13 16+
★6.6
Drama, Romance, History
Director: Marjane Satrapi
🎭 Based on
«Radioactive: Marie & Pierre Curie: A Tale of Love and Fallout»
byLauren Redniss
Trailers
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Teaser
Teaser
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Description
The story of Nobel Prize winner Maria Skłodowska-Curie and her extraordinary scientific discoveries—through the prism of her marriage to husband Pierre—and the seismic and transformative effects their discovery of radium had on the 20th century.
Worldwide:
$3.51M
Starring
Rosamund Pike
Actor
Yvette Feuer
Actor
Mirjam Novak
Actor
Awards
1 win & 1 nomination total
Key opinion
Radioactive is generally regarded as a mediocre biopic that fails to match the caliber of its lead performance. Critics and audiences alike feel the film prioritizes thematic messaging and heavy-handed visual allegories over a nuanced or authentic exploration of Marie Curie’s scientific life.
| Acting | Rosamund Pike delivers a compelling and intelligent performance that stands as the film's strongest asset. | |
| Screenplay | The script is widely criticized for being formulaic, verbose, and failing to effectively balance personal drama with scientific achievement. | |
| Direction | The director employs blunt, distracting visual metaphors—such as jumping to atomic bomb footage—that undermine the historical narrative. | |
| Theme | The film attempts to frame Marie Curie’s life as a modern gender-equality statement, leading to polarized views on whether this is an empowering perspective or a distracting, agenda-driven distortion of history. |