Wit

Wit is a compelling 2001 HBO film directed by Mike Nichols featuring a bravura performance by Emma Thompson.

The film is an adaptation of the Pulitzer-winning play by Margaret Edson, which was a significant theatrical success in the late 1990s and brought to the screen by the same production team including scenic designer Santo Loquasto and composer Stephen Warbeck, with equally effective results.

Emma Thompson stars as Vivian Bearing, a highly intelligent, stringent scholar specializing in the Holy Sonnets of the 17th-century English poet John Donne. The film begins with her receiving the diagnosis of advanced-stage ovarian cancer, with a mere 8-month prognosis. Vivian is a woman remarkable for her toughness and intellect, and her initial approach to her illness is analytical, even academic. She chooses to undergo an aggressive chemotherapy treatment hoping for a better statistical chance of survival.

However, she soon finds that her profound literary knowledge and rational thinking do not equip her well for the dehumanizing, body-weakening, soul-shattering processes involved in battling cancer. Vivian's journey is at the heart of the film, her transformation from a professorial lecturer to a vulnerable patient, treating her life as a text to be studied, dissected and understood, much like the poems she taught.

Thompson embodies Vivian's character flawlessly, drawing on her character's wit, courage, and intellect to infuse each scene with undeniable power while capturing her increasing physical frailty and emotional vulnerability with unflinching honesty. She's a marvel to watch, holding the audience in the palm of her hand from beginning to end.

Christopher Lloyd co-stars as Dr. Kelekian, Lead Specialist in the Oncology Department, who shows empathetic interest in Bearing’s case – not for her personal wellbeing, but for the advancement of medical science. Dr. Harvey Kelekian is portrayed as a man of determination and stoicism, encapsulating the often cold and calculative perspective of the medical fraternity towards their patients.

The cast includes Eileen Atkins, who portrays E. M. Ashford, Bearing’s former professor and the only character that ultimately brings a semblance of warmth and companionship in Bearing's life. Her character's juxtaposed compassion in comparison to the insensitivity observed in the medical experts significantly contributes to the narrative.

The film explores various themes like mortality, the nature of wisdom, and the impersonality of medical establishments. Wit also delves into profound questions about life, death, dignity, and the purpose of existence without ever resorting to melodrama or sentimentality. Every scene is treated with respect and honesty. The film's sharp commentary on the lack of compassion in some medical professionals, and their tendency to view patients as mere numbers or data retrospection, adds further depth.

The screenplay of the film, co-written by the original playwright, Margaret Edson, along with Emma Thompson, brilliantly maintains the integrity of the original stage play while effectively transforming it for the screen. The language is poetic, echoing the film's central theme of language's power and limitation in the face of something as raw and profound as human suffering. Subsequently, poetry and metaphor themselves become essential characters in Vivian’s narrative.

The cinematography by Seamus McGarvey aptly captures the stark contrast between the sterile clinical environment and the vividness of Vivian's internal life, memories, and imagination. Mike Nichols' astute direction ensures the film's potency, encapsulating the gravitas of the narrative at hand.

Although profoundly touching and often agonizing to watch, Wit presents a critical reflection on human mortality, the transformative power of suffering, and the beauty in experiencing life till its very end. It's a profuse discourse on the dichotomy between intellectual knowledge and experiential wisdom, well worth watching for its strong performances, poetic language, and thought-provoking themes.