The Professor and the Madman

In the mid-nineteenth century, the Scottish philologist James Murray takes on the enormous task of compiling the first edition of the Oxford English Dictionary, an undertaking meant to account for every word in the English language. After years of slow progress, he appeals to volunteers around the world for help, and one contributor stands out: an American doctor named William Chester Minor, who sends thousands of meticulous entries from Broadmoor, a British asylum for the criminally insane, where he was committed after a killing in London. Their long correspondence becomes a partnership built on mutual work, even as the circumstances keeping them apart prove difficult to overcome.

The film is directed by Farhad Safinia, who also wrote the screenplay with John Boorman and Todd Komarnicki. It stars Mel Gibson as Murray and Sean Penn as Minor, with Natalie Dormer, Eddie Marsan, Jennifer Ehle and Jeremy Irvine in supporting roles. Made for about 25 million dollars, it earned roughly 5 million at the worldwide box office.

On IMDb it holds 7.2 out of 10 from around 55,000 votes, and on TMDB 7.1 out of 10 from far fewer. A critics' rating of 5.5 out of 10 from 34 reviews sits well below both audience scores, showing a divide between professional and viewer response.