Seeing through a wonderful mind.

Rating: Null/10 (18 April 2002)

I expected a depressing movie. I was not disappointed, naturally. But the surprising part was the amount of humour in it. Mostly self-deprecating ones that made the audience chuckle, rather than laughing out aloud.
There had been complaints that this screen treatment of the biography of Nobel prize winning Professor John Nash (by Sylvia Nassar) did not entirely cover the more private side (or darker side) of his, which involved homosexual experiment. I did not miss it. To be frank, it was not necessary. We were not told to sympathise with Nash, who is already struggling with paranoid schizophrenia, but rather witness the world through his mind. Homosexuality need not apply. As Russell Crowe, who plays Nash, put it aptly in one of the award ceremony; `It's only a movie, folks.'
Fans of fast paced action movies back off. It's not for you. If you like a film, heavy on drama, liberal on humour, and generous on performance, this is good stuff. Crowe gets to play another real person after The Insider and he does what is expected of him. Jennifer Connelly is fine, but there are moments where you wonder if she was doing it for the awards. That's all right, if it was in the script.
Ron Howard won a long deserved Academy Award for this film. Finally a recognition after years of neglect. I still feel that he should have got one for either Backdraft or Apollo 13. He deserves one for this.
Oh yes, I forgot about Ed Harris. Here's another example of an actor who can sleep walk any role and still make it important. When will this guy get recognised at the Oscars. Catch him in this movie as another government-related official, and he still looks he is doing it for the first time. Harris is definitely a rare talent who can polish up stereotypes and make it look interesting. Bravo Harris! I look forward to seeing more of you...in the award ceremonies of course.