This review was written by Holly Weaver and originally published at Screen Queens.
The Aeronauts (2019) — Review
Director: Tom Harper
Screenwriter: Jack Thorne
Starring: Eddie Redmayne, Felicity Jones, Himesh Patel
Tom Harper’s biographical adventure film The Aeronauts opens with the candid disclaimer “inspired by true events,” and that framing prepares the viewer for a picture that prioritizes emotion and imagination over strict historical accuracy. Rather than attempting a documentary-style reconstruction, the film uses a real 1862 balloon ascent as a launching pad for a lyrical, visually driven story about curiosity, courage and human connection.
The narrative follows meteorologist James Glaisher (Eddie Redmayne) and pilot Amelia Rennes (Felicity Jones) as they ascend in a gas balloon to gather atmospheric data and test the limits of contemporary science. The characters draw on historical figures — notably Glaisher and aeronaut Henry Coxwell — but the screenplay reframes elements to focus on the chemistry between its two leads. Glaisher is presented as an exacting scientist who trusts numbers and measurement; Amelia, a fictionalized amalgam representing female aeronauts of the period, is an instinctive, theatrical presence who reads the world through wonder rather than charts. Their differing temperaments drive the film’s emotional core.
Jones and Redmayne make an effective on-screen pair. Their rapport is immediately believable and benefits from the movie’s claustrophobic setting: the wicker basket becomes an intimate crucible in which personalities, fears and philosophies are exposed. Because the characters spend so much time confined together, every glance and gesture matters; the actors use small, precise moments to chart the arc from professional partnership to deep mutual respect. The relationship grows organically, with the film allowing both performers equal room to breathe while keeping Amelia slightly more central to the story’s heart.
Cinematography is one of The Aeronauts’ strongest assets. Wide, breathtaking shots of the balloon traversing vast skies are balanced by tighter, more disorienting close-ups that convey the thinning air and growing danger. The visual design makes altitude feel visceral: you can sense the cold, the silence and the claustrophobia as the environment presses in. This visual ambition turns potential melodrama into something tactile and immediate.
Steven Price’s score supports the film without overwhelming it. The soundtrack swells when the visuals demand grandeur but also retreats, letting silence and diegetic sound drive tension in crucial moments. Those choices heighten realism and unpredictability; sometimes the absence of music makes a scene more harrowing, and the film benefits from that restraint.
Screenwriter Jack Thorne and director Tom Harper purposely emphasize wonder over fact. That choice occasionally invites criticism from viewers who prefer strict adherence to historical record, but here it works as a creative decision: the film is less interested in documentary fidelity than in what the ascent could symbolically represent. Scenes that imagine catastrophic storms or the balloon beginning to freeze are crafted to explore human resilience and intimacy under pressure, rather than to chronicle a precise series of events.
At times the script leans into sentimentality, and a few plot beats feel engineered to maximize emotional impact. Still, the film largely avoids heavy-handedness through strong performances and confident visual storytelling. The pacing keeps the pressure building at a steady rate, and the movie’s central tension — survival against extreme elements — remains compelling throughout.
The Aeronauts takes the biographical adventure genre in a more poetic direction. It celebrates curiosity and the thrill of discovery while acknowledging the collaborative spirit behind scientific progress. For viewers who appreciate character-driven period pieces with ambitious visuals and a focus on atmosphere, this film offers an engaging and emotionally resonant experience best enjoyed on a large screen.
19/24
Written by Holly Weaver
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