I had to chuckle when I read a couple of the other reviews here for the mentioning of Nikola Tesla. I remember as a teenager, my best friend idolized Tesla and was so negative about Edison. And, although MGM hired advisers from The Edison Institute and Thomas A. Edison, Inc. (of course, they may have had a perspective about Edison that was just a bit prejudiced in his favor), this movie does give unrealistic homage to Edison. But, that was exactly the intent of the film. To portray an American hero whose many inventions and business efforts helped transform America. It's as accurate as the typical movie bio-pic of the era, but those of us who live today cannot quite imagine how Edison and his inventions captured the American spirit.
The first amazing thing about this film is in the opening and closing scenes where Tracy (with makeup) resembles the elderly Edison to an extent that is amazing.
Tracy had a remarkable range, and this picture reminds me of his performance in the two Boys Town movies, while during the same time period he played quite different roles in "Northwest Passage" and "Boom Town". I can't think of an actor of that era (or this) who was more perfect for the role of Edison.
Rita Johnson is good here as Edison's wife. A tragedy led to the virtual end of her career. Charles Coburn has an all too short role as an investor, and Gene Lockhart is very good as one of Edison's competitors. A number of fine character actors portray Edison's assistants, including Felix Bressart and Henry Travers.
The plot of the story simply follows some of Edison's inventions, with the most attention being given to his light bulb. The story is particularly inaccurate in terms of his family life -- he was married twice (only once in the movie) and had quite a few more children than the movie depicted. But the topic of the movie is Edison, the hero. And in that it accomplishes its goals.
Highly recommended, and it's certainly found a place on my DVD shelf.
The first amazing thing about this film is in the opening and closing scenes where Tracy (with makeup) resembles the elderly Edison to an extent that is amazing.
Tracy had a remarkable range, and this picture reminds me of his performance in the two Boys Town movies, while during the same time period he played quite different roles in "Northwest Passage" and "Boom Town". I can't think of an actor of that era (or this) who was more perfect for the role of Edison.
Rita Johnson is good here as Edison's wife. A tragedy led to the virtual end of her career. Charles Coburn has an all too short role as an investor, and Gene Lockhart is very good as one of Edison's competitors. A number of fine character actors portray Edison's assistants, including Felix Bressart and Henry Travers.
The plot of the story simply follows some of Edison's inventions, with the most attention being given to his light bulb. The story is particularly inaccurate in terms of his family life -- he was married twice (only once in the movie) and had quite a few more children than the movie depicted. But the topic of the movie is Edison, the hero. And in that it accomplishes its goals.
Highly recommended, and it's certainly found a place on my DVD shelf.