The Theory of Everything (I)

The life-affirming, superbly acted true story of Stephen Hawking's first marriage. At a Cambridge University party in 1963, brilliant yet socially awkward physics postgraduate Stephen Hawking (Eddie Redmayne) meets literature student Jane Wilde (Felicity Jones). The attraction between them is immediate, and Jane more than holds her own against his fierce intellect. Stephen's advanced ideas about theoretical physics and cosmology also impress his tutor, Dennis Sciama (David Thewlis). But then he's given a devastating diagnosis of motor neurone disease and told he has just two years to live. Jane draws on her inner strength to stand by the man she loves as they face the future together. Oscar-winning 'Man on Wire' director James Marsh has a flair for telling incredible true stories. Adapted from Jane Hawking's memoir, this is a deeply moving, nuanced drama that doesn't shy away from the Hawkings' marital difficulties. It also benefits from a revelatory performance by Eddie Redmayne.