“The Wondrous World of Louis Wain”
Benedict Cumberbatch as a cat fan
Benedict Cumberbatch as cat fan Louis Wain.
© Studiocanal GmbH / Jaap Buitendijk
Benedict Cumberbatch proves with “The Wondrous World of Louis Wain”: A life with a cat is many things, but always unusual.
Benedict Cumberbatch (45) was just hoping for an Oscar as a homosexual cowboy in “The Power of the Dog” (in vain). In the meantime, his second solo film as a Marvel magician “Dr. Strange” is in the starting blocks, which will end up in the “Multiverse of Madness” at the beginning of May. In between, however, there was a film that could easily be overlooked with the current output of the “Sherlock” star. The drama “The Wondrous World of Louis Wain” about the 19th-century British artist of the same name starts on April 21. In this, too, Cumberbatch has to deal with madness. And lots of cats.
Everything for the cat’ – that’s what it’s about
Artist Louis Wain (Cumberbatch) is as talented as he is eccentric. As the only man in a household with his mother and five sisters, it is up to him to earn a living for the family and, ideally, to marry a rich lady. But he is not at all interested in the bond of marriage and instead of a job with a regular income, Wain prefers to draw animals – mainly cats.
In both matters, a rethinking of Wain should take place within a very short time. Because the publisher of the Illustrated London News (Toby Jones, 55) takes a liking to his whimsical, anthropomorphic cat characters and gives him the chance to pursue his passion full-time. And then he falls head over heels in love with the governess Emily Richardson (Claire Foy, 38), who is supposed to help his sisters in the household. Not only because of the difference in status between the two, a love that is not under a lucky star…
Truly wondrous
It may seem unbelievable when watching the film, but director Will Sharpe’s (35) film sticks closely to the actual (and at times hilarious, at times heartbreaking) life story of the real Louis Wain. The word “miraculous” didn’t make it into the German film title without good reason. This includes situation comedy to stroke of fate, love to madness – a surprising story that sometimes seems as contradictory as the behavior of the velvet paws.
Anyone who speculates on thematically uniform film fare will experience their blue miracle with “The Wondrous World of Louis Wain”. One facet of the film could therefore be seen as too sentimental, the other as too silly. Viewers got into a very similar quarrel with the film “Tesla” by Michael Almereyda (63) and with Ethan Hawke (51) in the title role as Nikola Tesla. Here, too, the motto applied: an extraordinary film must be dedicated to an extraordinary man.
Both films tell the story of a long-unrecognized 19th-century genius whose own psyche is increasingly getting in the way. In addition to an opulent historical look, both films rely on experimental narrative structure and optics. And in both, sooner or later, the main characters babble about electricity. Incidentally, Cumberbatch already did this in “Edison – A Life Full of Light” as Tesla’s greatest adversary Thomas Edison – so the (electrical) circle closes.
What a cast
The Wondrous World of Louis Wain works best when Cumberbatch and Foy play together. The love between her characters is touching but not shown in a corny way and is the tragic highlight of the drama. In addition to the two, the well-known cast is overshadowed, but once again it can be described as wondrous. A Taika Waititi (46) appears for a sentence, musician Nick Cave (64) embodies writer HG Wells and Oscar winner Olivia Colman (48) is only part of the party as an off-narrator. A circumstance of which the German audience unfortunately has little.
Conclusion:
Anyone who expected a classic biopic about the artist Louis Wain will quickly be taught otherwise. Although the film takes little liberties with the story, it does so even more with the way it is told. That surprises and offends at the same time. “The wondrous world of Louis Wain” is unpredictable – as cats are.