Before I watched the movie, I read a review which said this movie fails to reflect scientists as they are, just like Big Bang Theory. I agree about Big Bang Theory (no offense, fans) but I have to disagree about this movie! It captures the minds of the two scientists well: The endless enthusiasm that makes Humboldt travel to the ends of the world, and the love of thinking and math Gauss has...The two share the problem of being different than others surrounding them, and the movie contrasts their personalities and fields, which I liked.

Two scenes affected me especially (don't worry, no major spoilers): The tooth extraction scene of Gauss and what he thinks over it, and when the two men talk about how curiosity stays...Having the mind of a scientist myself, the movie touched me!

It's a very good film, describing in detail all kinds of inadaptability of scientists in ordinary people's society. Unfortunately, Gauss's part is too dull, as if he could only count it back and forth. Humboldt's exploration of primitive nature is much more interesting. After all, it's good to just look at the scenery. Although the director deliberately added a lot of play with his assistant to Humboldt, throwing can not change this situation.

This is based on a successful novel that contrasts the life of two eminent scientists, of the mathematician and founder of numbers theory, CF Gauss and the adventurer and explorer of South America (and the rest of the world) Alexander von Humboldt. They come from the same locale (Brunswick in Germany) and are about the same age, but Gauss rises from poverty whereas Humboldt is privileged. And whereas Gauss doesn't like to leave his office and rarely travels, Humboldt does practically nothing but to travel.

The original novel (which I haven't read) was apparently completely rewritten (by the author himself) for the script. The film is lavish and opulent and bears the characteristic sarcasm of its director, Detlev Buck. The duke of Brunswick, for example, is portrayed as a well- meaning nitwit who can't remotely grasp what young Gauss is on about, whereas Gauss is portrayed as a nerd and an eccentric. The movie is entertaining, but almost a bit too opulent for my taste. As always, I hope that it will inspire its viewers to pick up the biographies.