Review of Creation (2009) by Joe X — 04 Oct 2009

Creation is a wonderfully shot period drama about Charles Darwin's struggle with grief after the death of his daughter Annie, personal illness & the impact on his marriage with the publication of THAT book. Although Darwin is chiefly remembered for formulating the most revolutionary scientific theory known to mankind, that's not what this film is about. In fact it almost seems to get lost & smothered in a storyline that deals mainly with bereavement & illness.

So what's wrong with that? The problem is the tone of this film is so depressing that it actually gets pretty dull in places. With no lightness of touch to occasionally ease the burden, Creation plods the path of dreariness a bit too often. While you do get some sense of reconciliation between Charles and Emma there's nothing shown here in their relationship to suggest that they deeply cared for each other. All in all, beautifully filmed, but lacking a sense of balance.