Republic of the Philippines

Davao Oriental State College of Science and Technology

INSTITUTE OF EDUCATION AND TEACHER TRAINING
Guang-guang, Dahican, City of Mati, Davao Oriental, 8200

Assessment Task No. 2

Review and Critical Analysis of the Movie
“The Theory of Everything”

Members
Sunshine Grace Abueva
Joshua Kevin Solamo
Chadie Bareje
Ethel Mae Isidro
Jhon Edward A. Alboleras

Submitted to:
Jumher Dave Pajarillaga
 Overview

The Theory of Everything is a 2014 biographical romantic drama film which is set
at Cambridge University and details the life of the theoretical physicist Stephen Hawking. It
was directed by James Marsh and adapted by Anthony McCarten from the memoir Travelling
to Infinity: My Life with Stephen by Jane Hawking, which deals with her relationship with her
ex-husband, theoretical physicist Stephen Hawking, his diagnosis of amyotrophic lateral
sclerosis (ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig's disease or motor neurone disease), and his
success in physics. The film stars Eddie Redmayne and Felicity Jones, with Charlie
Cox, Emily Watson, Simon McBurney, Christian McKay, Harry Lloyd, and David
Thewlis featured in supporting roles.
At the University of Cambridge, astrophysics student Stephen Hawking begins a
romantic relationship with literature student Jane Wilde. Although Stephen excels at
mathematics and physics, his friends and professors are concerned over his lack of a thesis
topic. After Stephen and his professor Dennis Sciama attend a lecture on black holes,
Stephen speculates that black holes may have been part of the creation of the universe, and
decides to write his thesis on them.
While pursuing his research, Stephen's muscles begin to fail, eventually causing him
to fall and hit his head. He learns he has motor neurone disease; eventually, he will be unable
to talk, swallow, breathe, or move most of his body; and has approximately two years to live.
The doctor regrettably tells Stephen that there's nothing that can be done for him. Stephen
asks what will happen to his brain. The doctor tells Stephen that the disease will not affect it
or his thoughts, but that eventually, no one will know what they are. As Stephen becomes
reclusive, focusing on his work, Jane confesses she loves him. She tells Stephen's father she
intends to stay with Stephen even as his condition worsens. They marry and have their first
son Robert.
Stephen presents his thesis to the examination board, arguing that a black hole created
the universe in a Big Bang, that it will emit heat, and that it will end in a Big Crunch. While
celebrating with Jane and his friends, Stephen realises he cannot walk, and begins using a
wheelchair. After having their daughter Lucy, Stephen develops a theory about the visibility of
black holes, and becomes a world-renowned physicist. Jane, focusing on the children and on
Stephen's health and increasing fame, is unable to work on her own thesis and becomes
frustrated. Stephen tells her he will understand if she needs help. She joins the church choir,
where she meets widower Jonathan and they become close friends. She employs him as a
piano teacher for her son and Jonathan befriends the entire family, helping Stephen with his
illness, supporting Jane, and playing with the children.
When Jane gives birth to another son, Timothy, Stephen's mother asks Jane if the
baby is Jonathan's, which she denies. Jane sees that Jonathan overheard the conversation,
and is appalled, but when they are alone, they admit their feelings for one another. Jonathan
stays away from the family, but Stephen visits him, saying that Jane needs him.
Stephen is invited to attend an opera performance in Bordeaux, and suggests he
attend with his students while Jane and Jonathan take the children camping. Stephen is taken
ill during the performance, and rushed to a hospital. While in the hospital, the doctor informs
Jane that he has contracted pneumonia, and that he needs a tracheotomy in order to survive,
but which will leave him unable to speak. She agrees to the surgery. Stephen learns to use
a spelling board, and uses it to communicate with Elaine, his new nurse. He receives a
computer with a built-in voice synthesiser, and uses it to write a book, A Brief History of Time,
which becomes an international best-seller.
 Stephen tells Jane that he has been invited to America to accept an award, and will be
taking Elaine with him. Jane faces the realisation that her and Stephen's marriage has not
been working, telling him she "did her best". Jane and Stephen agree to divorce. Stephen
goes to the lecture with Elaine, the two having fallen in love, and Jane and Jonathan reunite.
At the lecture, Stephen sees a student drop a pen; he imagines getting up to return it, almost
crying at the reminder of how his disease has affected him. He goes on to give an inspiring
speech, saying, "There should be no boundaries to human endeavour. We are all different.
However bad life may seem, there is always something you can do, and succeed at. While
there's life, there is hope".
Stephen invites Jane to meet Queen Elizabeth II with him to receive his Order of the
Companions of Honour; they share a happy day together with their children, with Stephen
saying "Look what we made".
An extended closing series comprises select moments from the film; shown in reverse,
back to the moment Stephen first saw Jane. A final title sequence brings the lives of the lead
characters up to date. Jane and Jonathan are happily married, and she has completed her
PhD. She and Stephen remain close friends. Stephen declines a knighthood from the Queen
and continues his research, with no plans to retire.

Review

Stephen Hawking is one of the most brilliant scientific minds in the history. A legendary
physicist who died at age 76. Hawking’s cause of death was likely amyotrophic lateral
sclerosis, or ALS, a neurodegenerative disease that wears away at nerve and muscle function
over time. He was first diagnosed with ALS more than five decades ago, at age 21, and was
initially given just a few years to live making the very nature of his long, illustrious career as
much of a scientific marvel as the theories and discoveries it yielded.

ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis) also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, is a

progressive neurodegenerative disease that erodes motor neurons cells in the brain and spinal
cord that control muscular function until it becomes difficult or impossible for a person to walk,
talk, speak, swallow and breathe, according to the ALS Association. ALS symptoms often
begin with slurred speech or muscle weakness and twitching, according to the Mayo Clinic,
and get worse over time. The rate at which a person’s condition degrades can vary quite a bit,
though the average survival time is three years after diagnosis, the ALS Association says.
While there’s no cure for ALS, the condition can be managed with medication, physical
therapy, occupational therapy and speech therapy. Some patients also use ventilators to
assist with breathing. Doctors aren’t totally sure what causes ALS in most cases, though it
does appear to have a genetic component in some people, according to the Mayo Clinic. It’s
usually diagnosed in people between ages 40 and 60, and men seem to be more likely than
women to develop the condition, at least before the age of 65, the Mayo Clinic says.
Quite rare. Just 5% of ALS patients live longer than 20 years, according to the ALS
Association, and it’s virtually unheard of to survive for 50 years or more — though North
America’s longest-living ALS patient, a Canadian named Steven Wells, has had the condition
for almost 40 years.
 “This is fairly untypical,” says Lucie Bruijn, the ALS Association’s chief scientist, adding
that she is not aware of anyone who has survived ALS longer than Hawking did. Hawking was
also able to evade the dementia that some people with ALS experience toward the later
phases of the disease, she says.
Researchers aren’t sure, Bruijn says. “ALS is a complex disorder, and every journey
is so incredibly variable,” she says. “We are working with teams globally on these very big
data efforts, trying to understand each person’s clinical journey, what their genetics look like
and what they were exposed to.” From that, she says, they’re “trying to figure out the puzzle.”
With only a few cases of extreme longevity on record, Bruijn says the sample size is
too small to draw concrete conclusions about the factors that allow people like Hawking and
Wells to live so long, though it’s probably some combination of genes, environment and clinical
care. The kind of motor neurons affected by a person’s disease may also matter, Bruijn says,
noting that motor neurons that control eye movement often resist ALS far longer than those in
the brain and spinal cord. Understanding how those cells stave off death may help scientists
understand long-term survival, she says.
“What is different about those motor neurons compared to those in the spinal cord and
brain?” Bruijn asks. “We don’t have the answers yet, but I think those are the kinds of things
that can give us clues.”

Analysis
An important aspect of physical growth is the development of the brain and nervous
system which has an important role in a person’s physical capabilities. It is like a command
center that sends messages to make our body move or react to different stimuli. The areas of
brain that control both gross and fine motor skills include the cerebral cortex, basal ganglia
and cerebellum. Gross motor and fine motor skills develop extensively during childhood.
In the early stage of Stephen Hawkin’s life, ALS did not show its symptoms. His
physical, cognitive, and social aspects were not yet affected. In the theory of Sherrington, the
Reflex Theory (1906), it explains that the reflexes are the building blocks of complex motor
movements. In Stephen’s case, as he reached early adulthood, the symptoms started eroding
the motor neurons in his brain and spinal cord that resulted to difficulty in walking, talking,
speaking, swallowing and breathing. The basic structure of Stephen’s reflexes are not
functioning together and his brain no longer has the capacity to control his reflexes and due
to that, his movements made do not coincide with what his brain thinks.
Stephen’s abnormal movements is a direct result of his neurologic lesion. It inhibits
abnormal movement patterns to facilitate the normal movement patterns. Though his brain no
longer controls his movements as stated, his cognitive ability was not damaged because his
illness only captured his reflexes but not his way of thinking.
Hawking’s disability did not stopped him from proposing theories. He was considered
a renowned scientist, professor, theorist and a doctor written in history for he has contributed
theories that are made use of today. Even if he passed away last March 14, 2018, he still is
remembered by many today.
 Implications

"That's really the essence of the story, it's a very unusual love story in a very strange
environment, a very strange sort of landscape, and that is I think the abiding theme of the film.
It is how these two characters, these two real people transcend all the complications and
curveballs that life throws at them."
—James Marsh, speaking of the film's nature.
The Theory of Everything is a wildly popular movie which detailed the enigmatic and
profoundly impactful life of Steven Hawking, which was nominated for a slew of Oscar Awards.
The movie portrayed Hawking’s tremendous mind and the ability to engage the public in
understanding the creation of the universe while battling a life with an illness.
After watching that movie of the life of one of the greatest geniuses of all time Stephen
Hawking, we made realizations that helped us see the other side of things. We were able to
see how disabilities are never a boundary in creating something worth remembering, and in
Hawking's lifetime, theories in the context of science that are still alive and renowned today.
This said movie made us see how we took for granted our complete physicalities
knowing that there are people out there who lack either one part of those. We were made to
understand that we should always be grateful that we were not given deformities in our body
because truth be told, it might lead to experiencing even a harder life as life as it is is hard
already.
Also, it is really overwhelming how someone can be able to put up with someone who
has a given disability, just like Jane Hawking to Stephen Hawking. Although their love story
did not ended that happily but still, knowing for a fact that Jane knew Stephen's illness even
before they started dating is a representation that there are still people who would accept
someone even if they do not possess the definition of the society's standard on the word
'normal'.
Those realizations aforementioned are just some of the lessons we saw the movie are
trying to convey to their viewers.
Looking at the movie critically, it could be integrated in the classroom setting. Stephen
Hawking, a man who are able to finish his college even though he was diagnosed with an
incurable illness on his college years is a depiction that disabilities, illness, special needs and
such are not a hindrance into achieving one's goal.
In the perspective of educators, since we are to be educators in the nearest future,
encountering such disability of the students that we will be handling might not be an exception
therefore, we should have a prior knowledge about handling one. It is our duty to treat them
as normal as possible since we are promoting inclusivity, diversity, equality and equity. These
people should not be deprived with education because education is a privilege that anyone
shall have.
Hawking was diagnosed with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) and it is one of the
rarest diseases ever confined. It might be safe to say that as is it rare, only a short percentage
is the possibility that we will be encountering one as a student but if we were to generalize it,
there could be students who are unfortunates in walking like Hawking and so it is our job to
cater them and treat them like the normal students as possible.
Lastly, since this activity focuses mainly on the learning outcome particularly the
differentiating of typical and atypical development of children through adulthood, we
understood that there is truly a thick line between them but honestly those do not and will not
matter because not all things that typical people can do cannot be done by those of typical.
 As to end, really any kind of illnesses will not stop one from attaining success. If
Stephen Hawking can do it? Why others who are disabled cannot? What it takes is
perseverance alone.

References:
Burke, R. E. (2007). The Integrative Action of the Nervous Sytem. Retrieved September 19,
2019, from https://academic.oup.com/brain/article/130/4/887/278000
Imdb (2014). The Theory of Everything. Retrieved on September 19, 2019, from
https://m.imdb.com/Title/tt2980516/plotsummary