Go to the "Infinity" Page

'Infinity': Irresistible Force

Richard Feynman, one of the brains behind the A-bomb, had two passions: science and Arline Greenbaum. The first opened his eyes to the mysteries of life, the other to the boundlessness of true love. "Infinity," based on the late Nobel Prize-winning physicist's memoirs, is an old-fashioned exploration of Feynman's commitment to both the laws of nature and those espoused by his free-spirited first wife, Arline.

Matthew Broderick, who plays the young Feynman, also makes his directorial debut with this affecting, oddball romance. The screenplay, written by Broderick's mother, Patricia, is character- driven, understated, maybe even a little aimless. But given the tragic circumstances of the Feynmans life together, it seems wholly reasonable that they might now and then lose their way.

Richard, a teenage egghead, is immediately smitten by Arline (effervescent Patricia Arquette), an aspiring artist bent on externalizing her beliefs via her bright, lively canvases. A gifted teacher, he taught her about relativity, infinity and nuclear fission, and she, in turn, brought him down to earth and made him laugh at himself. "What do you care what other people think?" was her motto, and he tried his best to make it his.

The high school sweethearts are separated after he lands a scholarship at Princeton, except for passion-filled weekend visits. Though madly in love, they decide to postpone marriage until he finishes graduate school, but that changes when Arline develops an incurable, highly contagious form of tuberculosis.

Despite his parents' objections, Feynman marries Arline in a ceremony that must be sealed with a kiss on the cheek lest he also become infected. The moment is affecting, but not soggy, for Broderick resists the temptation to turn their tragedy into melodrama. Instead, he and his mother celebrate the couple's extraordinary devotion and courage during crisis.

Broderick's performance, similarly on the dry, professorial side, accentuates the enormity of his sorrow when his reserve fails. Obsessed with finding the solution to every problem, Feynman could split an atom, but he couldn't save Arline. But in the end, he comes to understand the forces unleashed both by love and science.

Infinity is rated PG for very mild profanity.