"The Electrical Life of Louis Wain" is a bio pic about Louis Wain, played by Benedict Cumberbatch, whose drawings helped redefine the cultural perspective on cats. As the movie begins, they do an excellent job of introducing the audience to the character of Louis Wain. He packs his day with so many different random adventures. He goes straight from drawing a dog with both hands to a boxing match to going swimming. He is a man with about 7 different part time jobs at the same time.
The first third of this movie is really good. Cumberbatch has terrific chemistry with the rest of cast and the scenes between him and Claire Foy are just adorable. If the movie had just focused up on this time period of Wain's life, I think we could of had a great, albeit a bit cliched, movie.
Unfortunately, there is a second half of this movie. Biography movies have a difficult job to do. Since most things in real life do not follow a three-act structure, it is up to the writer/director to create a story that feels complete. As opposed to focusing on a singular event in Wain's life like MLK in "Selma" or Lincoln in the movie "Lincoln" the movie goes for a big picture point of view. This makes the movie drag in certain parts and begins to feel pretty repetitive.
In short, the movie overstayed its welcome. I found myself looking at the clock as the third act came around, just waiting for the movie to end.
The first third of this movie is really good. Cumberbatch has terrific chemistry with the rest of cast and the scenes between him and Claire Foy are just adorable. If the movie had just focused up on this time period of Wain's life, I think we could of had a great, albeit a bit cliched, movie.
Unfortunately, there is a second half of this movie. Biography movies have a difficult job to do. Since most things in real life do not follow a three-act structure, it is up to the writer/director to create a story that feels complete. As opposed to focusing on a singular event in Wain's life like MLK in "Selma" or Lincoln in the movie "Lincoln" the movie goes for a big picture point of view. This makes the movie drag in certain parts and begins to feel pretty repetitive.
In short, the movie overstayed its welcome. I found myself looking at the clock as the third act came around, just waiting for the movie to end.