The Current War (2018)
Power changes everything
Director: Alfonso Gomez-Rejon · Writer: Michael Mitnick
Electricity titans Thomas Edison and George Westinghouse compete to create a sustainable system and market it to the American people.
Where to watch
Fandango At Home
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Trailer
Director
Alfonso Gomez-Rejon
Cast
Benedict Cumberbatch
Thomas Edison 
Michael Shannon
George Westinghouse 
Nicholas Hoult
Nikola Tesla 
Katherine Waterston
Marguerite Westinghouse 
Tom Holland
Samuel Insull 
Matthew Macfadyen
J.P. Morgan 
Tuppence Middleton
Mary Edison 
Stanley Townsend
Franklin Pope 
Damien Molony
Bourke Cockran 
Conor MacNeill
William Kemmler 
Celyn Jones
Sherman Quincy 
Craig Roberts
Robert Lane User Reviews (3)
_**Well acted and reasonably engaging, although there's a significant disconnect between form and content**_ >_The electric-lighting company with which I am connected purchased some time ago the patents for a complete alternating system, and my protest against this action can be found upon its minute-book. Up to the present time I have succeeded in inducing them not to offer this system to the public, nor will they ever do so with my consent. My personal desire would be to prohibit entirely the use of alternating currents. They are as unnecessary as they are dangerous._ - Thomas Edison; "The Dangers of Electrical Lighting"; _North American Review_, 149:396 (November, 1889) >_Any plan of distribution involving the meshing of the mains underneath the streets, with all house wires connected directly thereto, is regarded by the majority of competent electrical engineers as in many r…
In another case of “when bad movies happen to great actors“, 'The Current War' has all the elements for a great picture including its exceptional cast, but lacks the base appeal for the people who have to buy a ticket. Sadly, this is a rare and unfortunate case of the sum of the film's parts being greater than the whole. - Jess Fenton Read Jess' full article... https://www.maketheswitch.com.au/article/review-the-current-war-edison-versus-westinghouse-the-ultimate-grudge-match-with-no-winner
This is a decent, if ponderous, piece of cinema entertainment featuring some A-list talent depicting an almost entirely fictional account of the battle to establish the standard of electrical current we all use today. Tesla is largely ignored (maybe Nicholas Hoult didn't have too many spare filming days in his schedule) and as such the credibility of the whole storyline is undermined. Tom Holland and Matthew Macfadyen deliver well on the supporting front, but Benedict Cumberbatch doesn't quite cut it. History is frequently rewritten for the benefit of Hollywood, but rarely to quite this extent. Worth watching because it is an attractive film, but has little else to recommend it.
