A Beautiful Mind is a beautifully written, effectively acted, and meticulously crafted effort that is likely to remind many viewers of a simple axiom: a movie doesn't have to be groundbreaking to be compelling. Originality is a prized commodity because there is so little of it in Hollywood these days, but, when filmmakers do such a skillful job with familiar elements, their efforts should be acknowledged. Affecting without being overtly manipulative, A Beautiful Mind tells the life story of John Nash, a Nobel prize winner who struggled through most of his adult life with schizophrenia. As directed by Ron Howard, this becomes a tale not only of one man's battle to overcome his own disability, but of the overreaching power of love .
A Beautiful Mind purports to tell the true story of Professor John Nash (Russell Crowe). We first meet Nash as a student at Princeton in 1947. He is brilliant but erratic - a mathematical genius who lacks social skills. He is aided in making it through those difficult years by his roommate, Charles (Paul Bettany). Years later, following an astounding breakthrough that revolutionizes economics, John is teaching at M.I.T. and doing code-breaking work for a shady government agent, William Parcher (Ed Harris). It's at this time that John meets, falls in love with, and marries Alicia (Jennifer Connelly). But his happy world soon starts to crumble. John is afflicted with paranoid hallucinations; by the time he is taken to a mental hospital under the care of the mysterious Dr. Rosen (Christopher Plummer), he is diagnosed as having an advanced case of schizophrenia.
Academy Award Winner, Russell Crowe, successfully buries his personality beneath Nash's, allowing the character to come to the fore. Crowe shows no difficulty inhabiting the skin of a real-life individual who has a stronger intellect than physique. And, when it comes to the sequences depicting Nash battling his demons, Crowe's performance is utterly convincing.
Meanwhile, Jennifer Connelly is luminous as Alicia. Although the showier performance belongs to Crowe, it is Connelly's complex work, depicting a woman torn by love for and fear of the same man, that elevates the film to a higher level. Solid support is provided by Ed Harris and Christopher Plummer.
A viewer certainly doesn't have to be a mathematical expert to appreciate what A Beautiful Mind offers, although those with a strong left-brain component may relate better to John Nash than right-brainers. The movie tosses mathematical theories and theorems in the audience's direction, but explains them simply and lucidly; no one is going to become lost or bored. A Beautiful Mind isn't about mathematics except as a symbol.
It's about human frailty and the ability to triumph over it. Nash could just as easily be a doctor, a lawyer, or a construction worker and the essence of the story would not change.
At the core of the picture lies the relationship between John and Alicia, and the tribulations that the strength of their bond allows them to overcome.-www.reelviews.net
This movie mite hav been releasd sm yrs back, but i saw it only yesterday, so i thought i'd upload wht i thought of it on my blog ... :P
A Beautiful Mind truly is one of the few big budget movies from hollywood that can be considered a classic.
Russel Crowe, playin the schizophrenic John Nash, delivered a performance, well deserving of an oscar. HE truly brings to life the charactr of John Nash, and almost becomes Nash, as he performed scenes in which he fights off his inner delusions.
And Crowe's performance ws equalled by Jennifer Connelly who plays John's wife, with a strong sense of passion n love for her husband as she tries to cope with his hallucinations.
In-fact all the characters in the film delivered strong performances, which keeps the viewer connected with the characters who really do seem flesh n blood and not cardboard cliche's.
Though the movie may not be 100% accurate in it's treatment of Nash's ailment, the movie still manages to touch an emotional chord with anyone and everyone who would watch the movie.
A Beautiful Mind defies the conventional Hollywood wisdom that love is passion and romance. For John and Alicia, it is painful, heartbreaking work. And, "while hearts and flowers are great for a fantasy, this is the kind of expression of emotion that touches a deeper chord."
For me at least, this is by far, the best English movie i hav seen till date.
My rating is a clear 4.5/5
This is a MUST-watch movie for any movie buff ..
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