Latest screening: Creation

A noble, if largely cerebral and often unengaging drama Creation has the problem of wanting to be about a moment more than a man; not quite biopic and not quite epiphanic story. This follows Darwin in the year leading up to the creation of Origin Of Species and its publication but deals more in the mental state of Darwin - his anxiety over writing and publishing a potentially incendiary theory; the conflict between his growing atheism, his wife's faith and his own weakness for wanting to avoid confrontation; and his dealing with the premature death of his (clearly favourite) child.

Of course this condences time and uses flashbacks to suggest all this conflict existed within Darwin as he pondered whether to write and publish his theory, and indeed if he were capable. But then dramatic licence is allowable, i don't believe biopics and true stories need be 100% accurate. Buy a book for God's sake!

But the main problem here is it's just not all that interesting watching Darwin spend 2 hours going over and over the same anxieties and issues. The drama feels forced because really you get the sense that in reality there's not much drama there.

It also doesn't help that as good as the supporting cast is they are barely in it, even Jennifer Connelly has next to nothing to do. She has more than the paltry single scene afforded Toby Jones or the couple of snippets for Jeremy Northam, and she is good when called upon - in a thankless role. It is at least impressive on her part that for a role that could so easily have come off as a cold woman you sense the care and love under her frustration and opposition to Darwin's atheism and self-obsession. Connelly has fallen into the seeming cold trap before and i suspect the underlying feelings achieved here and thanks in great part to the actual relationship she has with husband Paul Bettany.

Almost all the film sees Bettany either alone or interacting with a ghost/hallucation(?) of his dead daughter - acting as his conscience, his sounding-board, his only friend, his outlet and, of course, the only dramatic device the film has to avoid 90+ minutes of Darwin talking to himself. She's essentially Wilson the ball from Cast Away!

Despite the film's flaws Paul Bettany impresses. Doing more than you would think possible to make the film work it skates by on his performance, being just short enough that you don't lose all patience. He is engaging while the film fails to be and it raises the overall impact. Generally though this is a film that lives and dies on Bettany's shoulders.

Darwin may be a name remembered for centuries to come but it's doubtful memories of this film will continue much past leaving the theatre.