Flash of Genius (2008)

Rolling Stone
3 stars out of 4 -- "Kearns' conflict is readable in Kinnear's every word and gesture. His performance is worth cheering." 10/16/2008 p.84

ReelViews 7 of 10
Flash of Genius is based on the real-life story of engineer Bob Kearns, who is credited with inventing the intermittent windshield wiper. The movie, which recounts the period beginning with the invention and continuing through a lawsuit against Ford Motor Company, follows the popular "David vs. Goliath" formula of the Little Guy fighting against the Big Corporation. One reason the film lacks punch is because, unlike similarly-themed movies A Civil Action and Erin Brockovich, there are no health issues involved. This is purely a patent infringement case, and that subject matter is a little dry. The key for a movie like this is to develop things in a manner that makes us want to watch it even though the story is familiar, and Flash of Genius succeeds only marginally in that regard...Greg Kinnear gives an admirable, but hardly great, performance as Bob...Alan Alda doesn't have much screen time, but he convinces as a practical lawyer who's interested in more than milking the case for as much money as he can get...While it's true that movies of this sort can be crowd-pleasers, the general tone and approach of Flash of Genius are too slow and low-key to generate the spark that will have audiences boisterously applauding Bob's struggle. Viewers who stick with the movie will be behind him at the end, but this isn't the kind of narrative that delivers the rapturous surge of emotion that some David vs. Goliath films provide. Engineers might find a limited fascination with the movie's depiction of the process by which Bob develops the intermittent wiper, but there may be too little of that to generate real interest. In short, Flash of Genius fails to make viewers care with any depth about the story it's telling. We have seen this kind of tale before, and director Marc Abraham (a longtime producer making his filmmaking debut) is unable to convince us that we want to see it again. - James Berardinelli
 
Chicago Sun-Times 8 of 10
Why do corporations tend to be greedy? I suspect it's because their executives are paid millions and millions to maximize profits, minimize salaries and slash benefits that cut into the bottom line. Sometimes this can be taken to comic-opera extremes, as when the (now) convicted thief David Radler was stealing millions from the Sun-Times and actually turned off the escalators to save on electricity. I guess that helps explain why the Ford Motor Co., followed by Chrysler, stole the secret of the intermittent windshield wiper from a little guy named Robert Kearns..."Flash of Genius" tells this story in faithful and often moving detail. If it has a handicap, it's that Kearns was not a colorful character, more of a very stubborn man with tunnel vision. He alienates his family, angers his business partner (Dermot Mulroney) and sorely tries the patience of his lawyer (Alan Alda), who he is not afraid to accuse of incompetence. Was his victory worth it? The movie asks us to decide. For Kearns, as depicted in this movie, it was. If he had not been obsessively obstinate, Ford would have been counting its stolen dollars...The movie covers events taking place from 1953 to 1982. The wiper was hard to perfect. There are some gaps along the way, and we don't get to know his wife (Lauren Graham) and his family very well, nor perhaps does he...Alda gives the film's strongest performance. Kinnear, often a player of light comedy, does a convincing job of making this quiet, resolute man into a giant slayer...Todd McCarthy of Variety notices an odd fact: Right to the end, Kearns always drove Fords. He remained loyal. I remember those days. You were a Ford, a Dodge, a Cadillac or a Studebaker family, and that's what you remained. It was nice when sensible wipers were added to the package. Thanks, professor. - Roger Ebert