“The Professor and the Madman” (Farhad Safinia, 2019) is such a brilliantly interpreted biopic about Doctor Murray, first compiler of the legendary Oxford dictionary, that I had to recheck it in Wikipedia, whether the whole story is true and not some sort of a fanfic variation.
No. It’s really a tragic and touching story, with a gigantic family drama – all in one.
Dr. Murray’s whole project and his reputation are at risk and at stake when suddenly a madman from an asylum for dangerous criminals, surgeon Minor, who killed a man by accident because of his hallucinations, appears out of nowhere to become his first aid as a lexicographer.
Based on the 1998 book “The Surgeon of Crowthorne” (Simon Winchester). Starring: Mel Gibson, Sean Penn, Natalie Dormer.
Original title (English): “The Professor and the Madman”
First published in the Levinarium Telegram Channel (now closed and deleted)