After being in limbo for a couple of years because of the Harvey Weinstein scandal, The Current War gets a belated cinema release to a pretty muted response. It is the end of the 19th century and the race is on to be the company who can provide electric lights to the masses. Benedict Cumberbatch stars as Thomas Edison, a famous inventor well loved by the public. He is in competition with George Westinghouse (Michael Shannon), a man who has made his fortune in gas lighting that will soon become defunct.
It may seem a curious subject for a film, despite the importance of the issue for people at the time, and director Alfsonso Gomez-Rejon seems to lack confidence in the story. He peppers the film with swooping camera shots, the use of Steadicam and some odd cuts. None of those were necessary as there is enough interest in the plot to hold your attention. The leads are fine but the best performances come in the supporting cast. The parts of wives in films like this are usually thankless roles but here, Tuppence Middleton as Mary Edison and the fabulous Katherine Waterston as Marguerite Westinghouse add significantly to the story.
There are some flaws in the way the story is told. It seems that Edison is set up as the hero, but in many ways, Westinghouse is the more sympathetic character and the alternating versus direct current contest is significant but needed to have been better explained. However, this is pretty solid entertainment.
Rating: 7 out of 10