Flash of Genius

Greg Kinnear, Dermot Mulroney, Lauren Graham

Robert Kearns takes on the Detroit automakers who he claims stole his idea for the intermittent windshield wiper.

Flixster Users

59% liked it

Critics

57% liked it

PG-13, 1 hr. 59 min.

Directed by: Marc Abraham

Released: October 3, 2008

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DVD Released: February 17, 2009

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Top Flixster Reviews


  • April 9, 2009
    Biopic of how Robert Kearns, the man who invented the intermittent windshield wiper, went up against the Ford Motor Company for stealing his idea. David and Goliath story presents its tale competently, but it's hard not to feel like we've seen this many times before. Our protag... ...( read more )
  • March 28, 2009
    Oh this was good!! Mr Kinnear has come such a long way from doing Talk Soup, to getting nominated for an Oscar to doing such pieces as this one. Impressive! The story of Bob Kearns is a tale of a very selfish but dedicated man. He gives up everything to see his work getting credi... ...( read more )
  • November 21, 2008
    The concept of "Flash of Genius" could almost come off as a joke - imagine telling your friends you're off to see a movie, and when they ask what it's about, you reply "intermittent windshield wipers". On the surface, it's hardly riveting material. First time director Marc Abraha... ...( read more )
  • June 29, 2009
    Greg Kinnear plays the guy who came up with the intermittent windshield wipers, you know, for when it's drizzling? Ford then rips him off and he spends years trying to sue them, not for the money, but for the recognition. What was most interesting about this true story was how ... ...( read more )
  • December 19, 2008
    An average American movie with a surprisingly charismatic lead. Yet, the movie is pretty much like thousands of other hollywood movies and nothing out of the box. Not really worth your time and money. A variation of the American Dream theme, the little man who sticks it to the bi... ...( read more )
  • July 5, 2009
    your creativity and your intelligence and your will to fight your inventions my take long but the reward is so worth your while. check this movie, its soooo nice!

Critic Reviews


View more Flash of G... reviews at RottenTomatoes.com
October 3, 2008
Claudia Puig, USA Today

While some scenes deliver, Flash of Genius suffers from an occasional lack of narrative tension. full review

October 3, 2008
Liam Lacey, Globe and Mail

This is an inspirational melodrama derailed by the low stakes of the subject and the flaws of its hero. full review

October 3, 2008
Joe Morgenstern, Wall Street Journal

If only the movie were more than intermittently interesting. full review

October 3, 2008
Kurt Loder, MTV

[Greg Kinnear] gives one of the most carefully modulated and moving performances of his career. full review

October 2, 2008
Colin Covert, The Minneapolis Star Tribune

A kamikaze flight of a movie that presents itself like a weighty Oscar contender. If there were a category for Best Unintentional Self-Parody, it would be a shoo-in. full review

October 2, 2008
Steven Rea, Philadelphia Inquirer

Flash of Genius has its corn, its conflation, its composite characters. But Kinnear does what he's done in the past: You underestimate the guy's acting chops, and suddenly, strikingly, he floors you. full review

October 2, 2008
Peter Travers, Rolling Stone

Kinnear takes the star spot in Flash of Genius and rides it to glory. full review

October 2, 2008
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times

Flash of Genius tells this story in faithful and often moving detail. full review

September 28, 2008
Nick Schager, Slant Magazine

What little tension exists in Flash of Genius stems not from its ho-hum narrative, but from its attempts to fashion a heartwarming tale from a true-life story that, in many respects, wasn't all that h... full review

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