The Story of Louis Pasteur: A lot of shouting about invisible bugs

Is it worth your time?

Honestly, only if you have a weird soft spot for black-and-white biopics that feel like they were filmed inside a dusty library. You will love this if you enjoy watching a protagonist be the smartest person in the room for 87 minutes straight. If you get bored by people standing in circles and yelling about science, you are going to hate this.

Paul Muni is absolutely committed here. He’s got this intense, vibrating energy like he’s trying to solve a puzzle while his house is on fire. It’s almost exhausting to watch him stare down these doctors who are so stubborn it hurts.

The germ thing

The whole movie is basically Pasteur telling everyone to wash their hands. It’s wild to think that was a revolutionary idea. There’s a scene where he’s trying to convince the medical academy, and they look at him like he just suggested the moon was made of cheese. The level of condescension in that room is off the charts. I think I counted at least six different men adjusting their monocles in disgust. 🙄

The movie doesn't really care about the science details, though. It cares about the drama of being right when everyone says you're a crackpot. It’s a very 1930s way of telling a life story. It feels a bit like a stage play that wandered onto a film set.

• The beards in this movie are truly legendary.
• The lighting is very 'dramatic shadows on a wall.'
• I’m pretty sure the same background extra appears in three different scenes as a dying patient.

There's this one moment where he’s testing his rabies vaccine on a kid. The tension is supposed to be high, but the editing is so weirdly paced that it feels like he’s just waiting for a bus. It’s a strange choice. It makes the whole high-stakes science thing feel surprisingly casual.

If you liked the vibe of Good Dame, you might appreciate the grit, though this is definitely a different kettle of fish. It lacks that spark of life, honestly. It feels like a history textbook that decided to wear a suit and tie.

Still, watching Muni lose his mind over the French medical establishment is weirdly satisfying. He plays the 'frustrated genius' archetype so well he almost makes you believe he actually discovered the cure for everything in his spare time. It’s a bit stiff, sure. But it’s not boring, even if it is a bit pompous at times.