Review 633: The Electrical Life of Louis Wain

 

The Electrical Life of Louis Wain is fascinating, touching bio pic with another commedable performance by Benedict Cumberbatch at the centre.

In 1881, after his father's death, Louis Wain (Benedict Cumberbatch) is left alone to look after his five sisters and his mother. Three things set in him on a more colourful path: he's offered a job as a illustrator by a prestigious magazine editor, he meets and falls in love with his sisters' new governess Emily Richardson (Claire Foy) and the pair of them adopt a stray cat they name Peter, whose presence inspires him to take a new and extraordinary artistic turn.

Wain is built up, over the course of the film, as a genuinely tragic figure, how his talent for painting cats took off because of tragedy in his life. It pushed him to channel his grief into his work which catapulted him to success and accidentally ruin his family in the process because he didn't secure the copyright which meant he didn't get repaid when the work was reprinted. He was instrumental in turning cats into the domestic animals they are today. Something about them just clicked and he believed that cats were evolving to communicate with humans and that they ultimately would turn blue. He faced many trials and tribulations including being naive about money and burned with the responsibility of providing for his family and then finally being reduced into poverty.

As the film goes on, we get the sense that his reality is constantly on the brink of collapsing to reveal another reality behind it. His mental deteriorated as he’s overwhelmed by his demons and responsibilities  iris lenses and kaleidoscopic imagery are used to 

Emily's death is heartbreaking, it has a profound effect on Wain. After that, he struggled to continue to provide for his family, he had difficulty handling his grief, his fragile mind struggled to keep a grip on reality and he just couldn’t cope in the long run. 

Writer/director Will Sharpe's direction is sensitive, wether it be a dutch angle or a one take tracking shot showcasing the inside of Louis Wain's house or the market place as well as conveying the deterioration of Wain’s erratic mind. The cinematography is gorgeous and captures the  several shots look like water colour paintings. The score by Arthur Sharpe is beautifully lush, the costumes are colourful, the production design (recreating Victorian London and later in the early 20th Century) is terrific, there's great use of lighting and shadow to create a sense of authenticity and greatly conveying it as a period of innovation and scientific discovery. 

The aspect ratio however makes the film look small

Benedict Cumberbatch is excellent in the film playing Louis Wain. Expertly capturing his eccentric persona, his blunt awkwardness, his quietness and his perseverance. In todays world, we would class him as neurodiversive. He had a lot pressure put on him as the sole provider for his family including his five sisters and his mother and his enthusiasms were ultimately overtaken by mental illness.

Claire Foy delivers a charming and witty performance playing Emily Richardson, Wain's governess turned wife; Emily was Wain's constant ally, his rock, his light in the dark. Their relationship is the emotional core of the film, she encouraged him to throw himself into his cat paintings. Their marriage is a loving one with 

Andrea Riseborough, Sharon Rooney, Aimee Lou Wood, Hayley Squires & Stacy Martin all do fine work  playing Louis Wain's five sisters. Their relationship with Louis is very co-dependent with him being the sole breadwinner after their father died. 

Toby Jones has a rather noteworthy role playing Sir William Ingram, a British illustrator who was Louis Wain’s editor  

Olivia Coleman provides a crisp, concise narration which a lot of gravitas to the film 

4/5.

The Anonymous Critic.