My Review- Radioactive (Prime Amazon) My rating 6/10

My 6/10 rating is for the film itself Rosamund Pike gets an 8:10 for her performance as Marie Curie the famous Nobel Winning Scientist who discovered the elements of Polinium and Radium.

She marries and forms a partnership with her husband Pierre (Sam Riley ) who also gives a fine performance in a very flawed script apparently filled with inaccuracies to add to the drama but in my view only adds to the dullness of this movie.

"Rotten Tomatoes " though similar to me "Radioactive's flawed script and counterproductive storytelling choices are offset by Rosamund Pike's central performance in a sincere tribute to a brilliant scientific mind.

The film is based on the graphic novel ''Radioactive: Marie & Pierre Curie: A Tale of Love and Fallout'' by Lauren Redniss. This is director Marjane Satrapi's first film based on a graphic novel that was not written by her. I think that is very obvious and shows her inexperience . The Screenplay by Jack Thorne is just dull and uninteresting I'm sure the book it's based on must be better.

There are intrusive and unnecessary and distracting references to the future effects of Marie Curie's contributions to Science depicting the future impact of her discoveries, including external beam radiotherapy at a hospital in Cleveland in 1956, the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, a nuclear bomb test in Nevada in 1961, and the Chernobyl disaster in 1986 it gives the impression or perhaps message that perhaps humanity may have been better off without her great discoveries?

Both the Curies experienced radium burns, both accidentally and voluntarily, and were exposed to extensive doses of radiation while conducting their research. They experienced radiation sickness and Marie Curie died of aplastic anemia in 1934. Even now, all their papers from the 1890s, even her cookbooks, are too dangerous to touch. Their laboratory books are kept in special lead boxes and people who want to see them have to wear protective clothing. Had Pierre Curie not been killed as he was, it is likely that he would have eventually died of the effects of radiation, as did his wife, their daughter Irène, and her husband Frédéric Joliot.

I'm a great fan of Rosamund Pike and enjoyed her performance in this very dull average film I suggest read the book or watch the far superior 1943 film with Greer Garson "Madam Curie." and Walter Pidgeon as Pierre.

It was nominated for 7 Oscars and a much better film directed by Mervyn LeRoy and based on Ève Curie the daughter of Madam Curie.

The most accurate thing I can say about this movie is that I watched it... then went searching for the real story. This excessive dramatization I am sure does little to present the true story.

Unlike many here I did not mind the reference to Hiroshima and Chernobyl. Although these happened long after Curie died and had no effect on her career, they were reminders of an important fact: science can be used in a beneficial manner, or in a questionable and disastrous manner. These things had nothing to do with Curie herself, but were cautionary references that I found pertinent to the concept that discovery always bears consequence.

As for Curie herself, at the end of this flick I felt I knew no more about her than when I started watching. The story dramatizes her personal life and excessively focuses on personal relationships while leaving out far too much of her science and actual career accomplishments. That is certainly no credit to the production and earns it a "mediocre" 5 stars.

Regardless of their understandable reputation of not always doing a good job sticking to the truth and instead taking liberties, there are a lot of very good and more biopic films out there. 'Amadeus', 'The Elephant Man', 'Lawrence of Arabia', 'Ed Wood' and 'Shadowlands' are favourites of mine. My other reasons for seeing 2019's 'Radioactive' was Marie Curie herself, a fascinating complex person with a fascinating complex life. And for Rosamund Pike, have always liked her but her unforgettable performance in 'Gone Girl' and her performances since has seen significant growth as an actress.

It pains me to say it, but to me 'Radioactive' sadly was a real disappointment in most respects. A case of a truly fine lead performance that deserved a much better film. Appreciated its ambition and good intentions, but Curie as a person, her life and her ahead of the time achievements that faced many obstacles were so much more interesting than depicted in 'Radioactive' and would have fared a lot better as a mini-series. Despite not being perfect, 1943's 'Madame Curie' treated her and her life with a lot more respect and taste.

Am going to start with the good things. As they are there, despite the strong overall disappointment. The best thing about 'Radioactive' is Pike, who is terrific and powerfully succeeds at making Curie a real character, rather than just an icon or stock caricature, with both strengths and flaws and showing steel in how she overcomes significant adversity. In fact, the acting overall is good considering what they had to work with.

Enough of the costuming and settings are handsome enough and evocative and there are moments of nice atmosphere in the photography. Curie and Pierre's relationship early on is quite sweet.

Unfortunately, there are many big drawbacks and significantly major. The script is weak, being very melodramatically soapy, awkward-sounding and far too exposition heavy (exposition that rambles and doesn't go very far). The editing jumps about all over the place visually and in the story, and the story is similarly disorganised. Curie is the only interesting character here, the rest are little more than underdeveloped walking cliches. Actually grew to really dislike Pierre by the end and the chemistry between Pike and Sam Riley (on admirable form) dissipates as the film goes on rather than gets stronger.

The story is very erratically paced, structurally it is very rushed and choppy but dramatically 'Radioactive' felt very dull because almost everything is underdeveloped and severely lacking in substance. The overuse of flashbacks and flash-forwards are too heavy in exposition and slow the film down a lot. Would go as far to say too that the flash-forwards are irrelevant, confused the drama at times and were not in good taste, seeming to undermine Curie's progressive findings and implying she contributed to future historical disasters.

While a good enough job is done with making Curie more than a caricature and her adversity, too little is done with the findings themselves, mentioned but treated in almost a throwaway way, their importance and what made her mind work. The conflict lacks tension and there is too much time spent on her personal life, handled in a bland and melodramatic manner.

Very disappointing film overall. Curie, her life and her achievements deserved better, as did Pike (giving one of her best performances in one of her worst films). See 'Madame Curie' instead. 4/10.