Storyline
Growing up poor in Madras, India, Srinivasa Ramanujan Iyengar earns admittance to Cambridge University during WWI, where he becomes a pioneer in mathematical theories with the guidance of his professor, G.H. Hardy.
Writers: Matt Brown, Matt Brown, Dev Patel, Jeremy Irons, Toby Jones, Jeremy Irons, Dev Patel, Toby Jones, Stephen Fry, Jeremy Northam, Kevin McNally, Devika Bhise, Enzo Cilenti, Anthony Calf, Alexander Cooper, Shazad Latif, Richard Johnson, Padraic Delaney, Roman Green, Nicholas Agnew, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Cast: Jeremy Irons -
G.H. Hardy
Dev Patel -
Srinivasa Ramanujan
Toby Jones -
Littlewood
Stephen Fry -
Sir Francis Spring
Jeremy Northam -
Bertrand Russell
Kevin McNally -
Major McMahon
Devika Bhise -
Janaki
Enzo Cilenti -
Doctor
Anthony Calf -
Alexander Cooper -
Stretcher bearer
Shazad Latif -
Chandra Mahalanobis
Richard Johnson -
Padraic Delaney -
Beglan
Roman Green -
Wounded Soldier
Nicholas Agnew -
Andrew Hartley
Taglines:
The true story of a limitless mind
Country: UK
Language: Tamil, English
Release Date: 3 Jan 2015
Filming Locations: The Charterhouse, Charterhouse Square, London, England, UK
Technical Specs
Runtime:
Did You Know?
Trivia:
David Leavitt ("The Lost Language of Cranes") wrote a semi-fictional version of this story in his novel, "The Indian Clerk". See more »
Goofs:
G.H. Hardy (Jeremy Irons) spells "Jacobi" incorrectly when writing on the blackboard
by transposing the 'c' and the 'b' This is changed in later cuts of the film. See more »
User Review
Author:
Rating: 7/10
Before Albert Einstein there was Srinivasa Ramanujan - A little known
fact outside India and the academic community, and precisely why this
story had to be told. The Man Who Knew Infinity serves as a biopic
behind the life and times of Ramanujan, a self-taught Indian
Mathematician, who some say could decipher the very fabric of
existence. It's a poignant film in as much as an emotional roller
coaster but an extraordinary story told almost a century after
Ramanujan's early and tragic death in 1920.
That's because Ramanujan was not only a mathematical prodigy by the age
of 11, or that he could mentally compute complex permutations in a
fraction of a second, but the fact that at the height of his powers,
not many could fathom his genius. Not even the Cambridge scholars who
elected him as a Fellow of the Royal Society and also a Fellow of
Trinity College monumental achievements for an Indian with no formal
training in mathematics. Based on this true story and adapted from a
1991 book of the same name, writer/director Matthew Brown begins the
film in 1914 Madras (back when Madras was rightly called Madras).
Ramanujan (Dev Patel) comes from a poor Brahmin upbringing where even
note paper is a luxury. He is seen frantically scribbling theorems on
slate before sending samples of his work to intellectuals in Cambridge.
Within an instant of receiving the latter's theories, Cambridge
academic G. H. Hardy (Jeremy Irons) is not only astounded, but invites
Ramanujan to study in England both as his protégé and the missing
link since Isaac Newton.
Forced to leave behind his young wife (Devika Bhise) with his mother,
this would be the start of many of his problems but not before going on
to make profound discoveries in his field of study. Close on the heels
of The Theory of Everything and The Imitation Game, 2014's Academy
Award frontrunners, Brown's screenplay fits the bill as a rousing film
with a lot of heart but not much insight. Instead, it's more of a
sympathetic look at Ramanujan's poor background and the hardships he
would encounter in England, including what looks like an over
exaggerated and clichéd case of racial prejudice and a depressing long
distance love story with his wife. What this means is Infinity is still
a well-made film worthy of a thunderous applause, but does little to
focus on Ramanujan's innate brilliance. However, from a storytelling
perspective that's not really the director's fault. Consider the fact
that almost a century after his death, intellectuals using modern day
computers are still baffled by Ramanujan's integrals and integers. And
only as recent as 2012 have scientists confirmed Ramanujan's incredible
intuition that suggests the existence of black holes in deep space a
concept that was virtually unknown during his time.
"Intuition" is Ramanujan's answer to how he arrives at his conclusions,
and the best moments in the film where Hardy forces Ramanujan to
provide "proofs", or sequential steps to his formulae. Without proofs
his theories are considered inconceivable and Ramanujan is often
dismissed as a charlatan. To its merit, Infinity builds on the
relationship between Hardy and Ramanujan, both extreme opposites in
their beliefs but recluses who find solace and then inspiration in each
other. Irons is perfectly cast as an outspoken atheist opposite Patel
who believes his theories come from God. Their symbiotic chemistry
builds towards a tearjerker of an ending while adding warmth and
closure. Given that Ramanujan was known to be short and stout, Patel
might seem like a strange casting choice yet captures his character
with integrity and passion and in some ways, a beefier underdog akin to
his breakout role in Slumdog Millionaire.
That The Man Who Knew Infinity is aimed as a crowd pleaser is obvious
and it works well within this scope. And given the subject matter, this
film should also do well in foreign markets, especially multiplexes in
the Subcontinent and surrounding regions. What's more important, and
hopefully so, is that the film brings out Ramanujan's true legacy
shoulder to shoulder with the likes of Newton and Einstein. Time, as
infinite as itself, will tell.
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