*Possible spoilers follow*
I had the pleasure of viewing Longitude on A & E last night after finding my self intrigued by the ads they had run during the day. Prior to seeing it, I must confess that I had been ignorant of the struggles of John Harrison or Dava Sobel's chronicle of them. Even though I was initially dismayed that the film appeared to be a British costume drama I decided to give it a chance. I am thankful I did, because I was absolutely engrossed after no more than thirty minutes. The overall premise is man's quest to determine an accurate method of determining his longitude to navigate the seas more safely. This hook is presented right at the beginning of the film and the title of the film is explained. As we will see later in the film, this problem is not easily solved. In this day and age of satellite GPS we find it amazing that such a great effort was undertaken to obtain information we take for granted on a daily basis. What makes the film work is that we experience this epic quest from two extremely intense personal struggles. Michael Gambon does not become John Harrison...Gambon IS Harrison! In this life, I will be privileged to view another performance as convincing as Gambon's. The net effect of this is to communicate Harrison's passion for solving the longitude problem and create great empathy within the viewer. However, what truly elevates "Longitude" as a film is the segues to and from the struggles of Rupert Gould, a brilliant man who became obsessed with the restoration and preservation of the Harrison chronometers in the first half of this century. Jeremy Irons' portrayal of Gould is nearly a match of Gambon's. Gould is presented as a kindred spirit to Harrison, and the interweave of both men's tales is deftly handled. Their triumphs and failures are layered upon one another, and this only serves to heighten the emotion evoked by the film. Believe me, emotion is evoked in spades as we see Harrison and Gould question their capabilities as engineers and scientists, whether or not the pursuit of their dreams is worth the opposition of the establishment, and if those same dreams are worth the sacrifice of their interpersonal relationships. There are several moving moments between Harrison and his faithful son William who is also magnificently played by Ian Hart. These personal struggles and triumphs are what drive the film and make the story of the solution to the longitude problem so compelling. "Longitude" is an utterly magnificent achievement of filmed entertainment that enlightens and moves the viewer with its epic yet intimate portrayal of a man attempting to solve a problem we find simple today but was considered the greatest scientific quandary of its time.
I had the pleasure of viewing Longitude on A & E last night after finding my self intrigued by the ads they had run during the day. Prior to seeing it, I must confess that I had been ignorant of the struggles of John Harrison or Dava Sobel's chronicle of them. Even though I was initially dismayed that the film appeared to be a British costume drama I decided to give it a chance. I am thankful I did, because I was absolutely engrossed after no more than thirty minutes. The overall premise is man's quest to determine an accurate method of determining his longitude to navigate the seas more safely. This hook is presented right at the beginning of the film and the title of the film is explained. As we will see later in the film, this problem is not easily solved. In this day and age of satellite GPS we find it amazing that such a great effort was undertaken to obtain information we take for granted on a daily basis. What makes the film work is that we experience this epic quest from two extremely intense personal struggles. Michael Gambon does not become John Harrison...Gambon IS Harrison! In this life, I will be privileged to view another performance as convincing as Gambon's. The net effect of this is to communicate Harrison's passion for solving the longitude problem and create great empathy within the viewer. However, what truly elevates "Longitude" as a film is the segues to and from the struggles of Rupert Gould, a brilliant man who became obsessed with the restoration and preservation of the Harrison chronometers in the first half of this century. Jeremy Irons' portrayal of Gould is nearly a match of Gambon's. Gould is presented as a kindred spirit to Harrison, and the interweave of both men's tales is deftly handled. Their triumphs and failures are layered upon one another, and this only serves to heighten the emotion evoked by the film. Believe me, emotion is evoked in spades as we see Harrison and Gould question their capabilities as engineers and scientists, whether or not the pursuit of their dreams is worth the opposition of the establishment, and if those same dreams are worth the sacrifice of their interpersonal relationships. There are several moving moments between Harrison and his faithful son William who is also magnificently played by Ian Hart. These personal struggles and triumphs are what drive the film and make the story of the solution to the longitude problem so compelling. "Longitude" is an utterly magnificent achievement of filmed entertainment that enlightens and moves the viewer with its epic yet intimate portrayal of a man attempting to solve a problem we find simple today but was considered the greatest scientific quandary of its time.