The Current War
THE CURRENT WAR - 101 Films
The Current War, directed by Alfonso Gomez-Rejon, has long been in release anguish after being acquired via the Weinstein company Miramax in 2016 but left in the dark after the Weinstein scandal forced the company to start liquidating and selling all assets. Almost three years after it started rolling, audiences have finally got the chance to see the long-anticipated picture which boasts both Michael Shannon and Benedict Cumberbatch as rivaling titans George Westinghouse and Thomas Edison, respectively, as they fight for dominance in the late 19th and early 20th Century during the war for electricity.
Gomez-Rejon's film is a stirring success. A historical romp from start to finish that serves up two fabulous performances from Shannon and Cumberbatch, who dominant with titan screen presence and prowess. Shannon, in particular, is magnetic to watch on screen. His character has more internal emotional anguish than that of Cumberbatch’s, who visually exploits his emotions to a far greater extent. Shannon crafts a phenomenal performance with superb skill that is evoked primarily through his exquisite body language. It is subtle and suggestive but undeniably powerful with one small twist of the eyebrow or a crooked smile telling a tale worth a thousand words.
Cumberbatch is equally as compelling as Edison, a character that is far more emotionally apparent with a greater dynamic compared to Shannon. Edison's family are an integral arc to his ultimate trajectory. This is a factor that results in a vibrant and far more morally complex character for the film to explore than a simplistic glory hunting depository. The two opposites of Westinghouse and Edison make for great material ranging from the complexity of their respective projects to their dynamic with moral ambiguity and their ideals of monetary and social pressures. The story of the two and the race runs parallel; both teasing a confrontation that slowly but surely arrives, even if it is slightly underwhelming. Understandable if based on pure historical accuracy, however, within the context of the film this ultimate meeting of industry fails to send the film off with a sense of valour, and instead is a slight underwhelming whimper.
The supporting cast does a terrific job of both impact and overall substance. Nicolas Hoult continues to impress, and his performance as Nikola Tesla is a standout. Granted, the character of Tesla is both underwritten and underutilised as the third, after Westinghouse and Edison, hugely influential component in electrical evolution in the modern world, but even with the lack of depth and screen time Hoult stands tall with a brilliantly awkward rendition of the infamous character.
Katherine Waterson and Tom Holland have small but integral supporting roles to the two respective giants of the industry. Their roles ironically act as the same component to both parties, even if in two very distinctively different relationships to Westinghouse and Edison. Their roles individually need a little more screen time, but it is Waterson who has the most significant impact on the viewer and the overall film - even if she is strangely absent from the marketing material after starring in two major franchises in the last three years.
The score is wonderfully effective: soft and subtle that lightly plays over the extraordinarily beautiful cinematography from South Korean cinematographer Chung Chung-hoon. The two are a marriage made in heaven with the latter's beauty remarkably intoxicating even in the most mundane of setting. The two coincide in supreme bliss throughout this picture that has utterly ideal pacing from editor David Trachtenberg that is razor-sharp while also serving a compelling, informative narrative, finding a perfect balance in the process that results in a ferociously vigorous and engaging drama.
The Current War is released July 26, 2019 in the UK.
