Tesla is one of those films that folks will find brilliant or dreadful.
In style and form, it's closer to a stage play. Characters frequently play monologues in front of intentionally-flat-looking backdrops. The story is told directly to the audience by an unreliable narrator. It is not telling a documentary tale but rather the story of Tesla partly from the perspective of his friend and erstwhile love, Anne Morgan, and partly from our modern perspective looking back.
Looking for realism is a fool's errand with this film. It is impressionistic and high design, not a literal biopic. Anachronisms are intentional, and it roots it in today's popular view of Tesla rather than a historical one.
The film makes an open question of Tesla's balance of genius and madman. The mysteries of his later life are left unanswered.
There have been quite a few films and documentaries about Tesla's life which were enlightening and described what he was possibly trying to achieve. If you want a historical perspective, look them up. That's not what this film is here for. This would fall closer into a category with the portrayal by David Bowie in The Prestige, a mix of truth and legend.
In style and form, it's closer to a stage play. Characters frequently play monologues in front of intentionally-flat-looking backdrops. The story is told directly to the audience by an unreliable narrator. It is not telling a documentary tale but rather the story of Tesla partly from the perspective of his friend and erstwhile love, Anne Morgan, and partly from our modern perspective looking back.
Looking for realism is a fool's errand with this film. It is impressionistic and high design, not a literal biopic. Anachronisms are intentional, and it roots it in today's popular view of Tesla rather than a historical one.
The film makes an open question of Tesla's balance of genius and madman. The mysteries of his later life are left unanswered.
There have been quite a few films and documentaries about Tesla's life which were enlightening and described what he was possibly trying to achieve. If you want a historical perspective, look them up. That's not what this film is here for. This would fall closer into a category with the portrayal by David Bowie in The Prestige, a mix of truth and legend.