Westinghouse: The Life and Times of an American Icon
April. 08,2008
American engineer George Westinghouse revolutionized the American electricity system in the late 1880s with his endorsement of AC power distribution. This historical documentary chronicles Westinghouse's legendary rivalry with Thomas Edison and the birth of his many inventions, including the rail-road air brake.
Reviews
Simply Perfect
Good movie, but best of all time? Hardly . . .
It’s sentimental, ridiculously long and only occasionally funny
It is neither dumb nor smart enough to be fun, and spends way too much time with its boring human characters.
For those of us who grew up with the advertising jingle: "You can be sure, if it's Westinghouse," this is a trip back to the story behind the name. While Westinghouse is not as famous as Edison to most folks he had an impact equal to Edison on modern society. A modest man who hated to be photographed, Westinghouse allied with the Inventor Nikola Tesla to win the battle of the currents, with their AC current trumping Edison's Direct Current. Westinghouse, a prolific inventor, was also an enlightened man who cared deeply for others. That is also part of the tragedy of his life- since he was not a scoundrel, or a robber baron he is largely overlooked in his contributions to modern industrial society. A good man who did well- the movie, it is feature length, uses existing pictures and narratives as well as some movie clips to tell the story. Wish they would have gone a bit more in depth regarding his son- little is mentioned of him, other than he was a sole child. Also, it would be nice if they mentioned a little more about his professional and friendship with Tesla. Overall a very good, if somewhat formulaic effort.
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