Michael Almereyda

This film biography begins with a man stroking a cat’s back, producing a spark. The petting also produces a question from the man: “Is nature a gigantic cat, and, if so, who scratches its back?” The questioner is Nikola Tesla, an inventor finally getting credit and, that, courtesy of a car bearing his name.

Before Tesla the electric vehicle existed, its namesake — scientific visionary Nikola Tesla — revolutionized the notion of electrical power. But Tesla the visionary might not recognize his namesake in Tesla, the movie. His story is undoubtedly compelling. But the reticent, dreamer who inspires this cinematic vehicle often seems a bit out of place in his own movie.