"His mind changed our world. Her love changed his."
The Theory of Everything - Movie Quotes
Memorable Quotes
There should be no boundaries to human endeavor. We are all different. However bad life may seem, there is always something you can do, and succeed at. While there's life, there is hope.
— Stephen Hawking
Context:
Stephen delivers this line via his computerized voice during a lecture to a large audience near the end of the film. He has just imagined being able to stand up and return a dropped pen to a student, a moment of poignant reflection on his lost mobility. The speech that follows is his inspirational philosophy on life.
Meaning:
This quote encapsulates the film's central message about perseverance, hope, and the limitless potential of the human spirit. It's a powerful statement on overcoming adversity and finding a purpose regardless of one's circumstances.
I have loved you. I did my best.
— Jane Hawking
Context:
Jane says this to Stephen after he tells her he is taking his nurse, Elaine, with him to America. It is the moment they both tacitly acknowledge their marriage has run its course and agree to divorce.
Meaning:
This heartbreaking line signifies the end of their marriage. It's a simple, yet profound, summation of Jane's decades of love, sacrifice, and exhaustion. It acknowledges that love alone was not enough to sustain their marriage under such extraordinary pressure, and that its end is not a failure but a painful necessity.
Look what we made.
— Stephen Hawking
Context:
Near the end of the film, Stephen invites Jane to meet the Queen with him and their children. As they watch their children play in the garden at Buckingham Palace, Stephen says this to Jane, and they share a warm, knowing smile. It shows their lasting bond as friends and parents.
Meaning:
This is a quote of profound tenderness and reflection, shifting the focus from cosmic theories to their shared human creation: their family. It signifies that despite their divorce and all the hardships, the enduring legacy of their time together is their children and the love that created them.
Cosmologist. It's a kind of religion for intelligent atheists.
— Stephen Hawking
Context:
This is part of the playful banter between Stephen and Jane when they first meet at a party at Cambridge. It establishes their intellectual dynamic and the friendly opposition between his scientific worldview and her religious faith.
Meaning:
This witty line, delivered early in the film, perfectly captures Stephen's character: brilliant, charming, and firmly rooted in scientific atheism. It cleverly frames his life's work as a quest for ultimate answers, akin to a religious pursuit, but one based on evidence and reason rather than faith.