In Genius, a stylish and smart biopic about books and the people who devote their entire being to crafting them, Colin Firth and Jude Law star as two landmark figures in the American publishing landscape. Firth is Maxwell Perkins, the editor credited with discovering Ernest Hemingway, F. Scott Fitzgerald and Thomas Wolfe. Jude Law brings Wolfe, the last, and possibly most complicated of the famous trio of authors to life. In the opening minutes of the film we watch Perkins reading through a massive manuscript — Wolfe's submission, of course. He's subtly illuminated, more iridescent than the rest of the commuters around him. The work gives him a literal glow. Then we see Wolfe, he's a bit manic and burst into Perkins' office, desperate to know if he will be published. He declares, "I wanted to meet the man who first published F. Scott Fitzgerald because the world needs poetry." Taken aback, but enchanted, Perkins informs Wolfe that he wants to publish his book. And so begins the friendship that the film follows.
We see a lot of montages of writing and editing, and intellectual, bookish conversations. We also see Hemingway and Fitzgerald, brought to life by Dominic West and Guy Pearce, respectively. And with this monumental figures in American literature, we see the flawed and dramatic lives of writers and artists, too. It's the kind of book lover's behind the scenes picture that crops up every few years, and it's still effective. The portrait of the legendary Scribner editor is full of wonderful details and conversations that will delight fans of the people and places portrayed, but it's unlikely to win over anyone not already predisposed to its topic.
It's a well cobbled together portrait with plenty of fun performances and a great chemistry between Law and Firth, but it sometimes feels too forgiving of Wolfe's selfishness and vanity. There's something to be said for portraying the man as he was, and not glamorizing him for modern sensibilities, but the film is less effective in telling us why Perkins, and Wolfe's long-suffering lady love, Aline Bernstein (Nicole Kidman) put up with his shenanigans, even if they keep telling us being with Wolfe is intoxicating.
If you're in the mood for a chatty period piece that's equal parts meditation on the legacy of literary genius and the act of living while trying to be one, Genius will whisk you away into the intimate scenes of some of Scribner's best and brightest in their hayday.
