"The Professor and the Madman" (The Professor and the Madman), based on the title alone, it is difficult to arouse the expectation of most movie fans, but after seeing the cast, it is estimated that many people will choose to enter the pit.
Mel Gibson and Sean Penn, two veteran movie kings, have joined forces to greatly increase the interest in watching movies. If you take a closer look at the synopsis, you can basically conclude that this movie is not too bad. Based on real historical figures and stories, it tells the legendary experience of several people who wrote the "Oxford English Dictionary" in the time of Churchill in England.
"Oxford Dictionary of English" is a quotation, a survey of ancient and modern, a comprehensive exploration of the long history of English vocabulary before the 19th century, and a dictionary containing all English vocabulary and usage. After the book was published, it was recognized as an unrivaled and authoritative reference book. Half of the content in the dictionary is written by Dr. James Murray.
In order to ensure the success of the compilation of the Great Dictionary, Dr. Murray has gone through all kinds of hardships, sacrificed himself, worked hard for 35 years. Although he did not wait until the final booklet of the Great Dictionary was published, his methodology for compiling the dictionary laid the foundation for the completion of this classic authoritative reference book. The film dramatizes the legendary experience of Dr. Murray (Mel Gibson) when he compiled the two phrases A and B of the dictionary.
The huge amount of compilation capacity needed to be completed in that era, and several scholars estimated that it would take about 100 years. Dr. Murray, who was born in grassroots, invited all the British people to help, so that the public without a degree and non-professors can participate. Through letters, let the public provide all the books and allusions related to the words that need to be written. Save the time for them to look up one by one, after integrating the information, Dr. Murray and his assistant will organize it into a book.
Due to the limited manpower and the extreme rigor of Dr. Murray's work, the writing time was much slower than the plan requirements. Under the pressure of publishing, the college kept putting pressure on him and asked him to increase his speed, otherwise he would have to be replaced. When Dr. Murray was at a loss, God sent a mysterious messenger. A doctor named Miner (played by Sean Penn) alone contributed more than 10,000 quotations. This is a workload that is difficult for a professional linguist to complete.
When Dr. Murray decided to pay tribute to him in person, an amazing fact came to light. Dr. Miner was a military doctor during the American Civil War. He was sentenced to life imprisonment for homicide because of schizophrenia, and he is a recognized lunatic in a mental hospital.
However, Miner was a handsome and educated gentleman when he was in good spirits. The guards respected him very much, and the doctor also provided him with various conveniences, hoping to improve his mental condition. After accidentally seeing the national announcement issued by Dr. Murray, he decided to give it a try and indulged in it, and even improved his schizophrenia symptoms for a while. The two often talked loudly in the psychiatric hospital, citing the antithesis of the classics, and perfecting the meaning of each word.
Even the doctor was surprised by Miner's knowledge, and was even more curious about what caused Miner's schizophrenia. Although the film adopts the "dual hero model" in the character structure, the real protagonist of the film is Dr. Miner, played by Sean Penn. The theme of the film is people's struggle against destiny. Our destiny can be a completely different ending, no matter what kind of encounter is arranged, there is always something you can do.
Miner was a respected doctor at the beginning, and then due to the severe psychological burden on the battlefield, he became mentally disordered, fell into the trough of life, and became a lunatic in people's eyes. The compilation of the dictionary made his life take off again and found his spiritual sustenance. The film portrays Miner as a complicated character with many contradictions.
He not only has the contradictory identity of a doctor and a lunatic, but at the same time, his previous emotional entanglement with the victim's wife Millet has given him multiple complex identities such as sinner and lover, perpetrator and victim, teacher and student. The compilation of the dictionary on the one hand diverted his attention, on the other hand it also allowed him to repair the relationship with Millett, and the writing work became his journey of atonement for a while. The film highly praises the power of words, which have accumulated thousands of years of civilization, temporarily cured lunatics, and turned sinners into teachers and even lovers.
All miracles happen from the source and the power transmitted through words, completing the impossible communication. In the film, the relationship between Millet and Miner went from hatred to forgiveness, and then from love to love. The relationship between the two changed many times, all due to the connection of text and letters, gradually melting the ice of hatred. Although it is about the compilation of the Oxford dictionary, it still lies in the person's identity and relationship.
When the world knew that the Oxford Dictionary had been compiled by a madman, it was bound to cause intense public opinion pressure. Oxford also could not accept Dr. Murray's decision to add Miner's name to the list of thanks. The second half of the film describes in detail the deep friendship between Miner and Dr. Murray because of the "words". In order to save Miner from the overtreatment of mental illness, Dr. Murray almost went to the Supreme Court to put pressure on the mental hospital through various methods. In the end, he even went to Churchill, and he did not hesitate to bet on all his honor.
Dr. Murray knows too well what it's like to be misunderstood. Although he knows many languages and has a very high literary literacy, he missed the opportunity to enter the university for further studies because of his humble background. He has never had a professorship. When someone introduced him as the editor-in-chief at the beginning, many professors at Oxford University looked down on him, and until he successfully wrote the first two letters of the project, the professor and other honors were awarded to him.
In an era where birth and title were very important, Murray worked harder than ordinary people when he became a Ph.D. and obtained a professorship. One was regarded as a "liar" and the other was regarded as a "lunatic", but they joined forces to contribute to the compilation of the great "Oxford English Dictionary", which is a miracle and legend.
No matter what kind of encounter is arranged, our destiny can be "turned around" through our own efforts. This is the theme that "The Professor and the Madman" wants to convey. I have to mention that Sean Penn, who plays the "lunatic", once again provided us with an actor-level performance. In a film, so many different identities can be accurately interpreted, giving characters a variety of different behavioral responses, combining rationality and madness, desire and restraint, and greatly improving the overall quality of the film.
The film currently maintains a high score of 7.7 on the Internet. It is no exaggeration to say that Sean Penn contributed a lot to the high score, and even Mel Gibson was somewhat inferior. In an era where the film market is constantly seeking "newness", it is truly amazing that there is still such a touching interpretation of the "old world" legend in movies. "Professor and the Madman" is a lyrical elegy that has been spread all over the world, with the phrase "It lives on" always swirling in the tune, so that we, who are about to be separated from the letter, are once again moved by a piece of sweet fragrance.
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