More akin to a television movie-of-the week than a feature film, “Flash of Genius” is the true story of Robert Kearns, an engineering professor who invents the first intermittent windshield wiper before Ford Motor Co. unceremoniously steals his design.

Director Marc Abraham takes a quiet approach to this material, which was based on an article publish-ed in the “New Yorker” by John Seabrook. The slow-paced screenplay by Philip Railsback doesn’t help energize the story and despite the gravity of injustice perpet-rated on Kearns as a result of corporate avarice, some moviegoers may question whether this tale lends itself to a cinematic rendering.

When Kearns (Greg Kinnear) first demonstrates his invention to the Ford engineers it is done so at a distance and with a more than a healthy dose of paranoia. His fear was for good reason, as Kearns, an unassuming family man and educator, becomes emotionally and mentally ill following the realization that he is in fact a victim of patent theft in 1967.

In the process of pursuing legal action, Kearns manages to lose his job, alienate his wife and children and with single-minded tenacity refuses to drop a lawsuit against Ford. While Ford attempts to offer an ever-increasing monetary reward to keep the matter from reaching a jury trial, Kearns’ interest is in “acknowledgment of ownership” and in 1982 while re-presenting himself, he finally gets his day in court.

Kinnear delivers a restrained yet consistent portrayal of a man who was willing to risk everything in order to have his integrity and work validated. In a cameo performance Alan Alda adds a little spark and energy to an otherwise low-key cast of supporting players.

Because of the sluggish approach to the subject matter, “Flash of Genius” won’t likely appeal to action-minded audiences. It may how-ever find a following among message-seeking moviegoers and considering the current climate of financial uncertainty, this film arrives at the box-office in a timely and haunting fashion. The film does succeed in illuminating the fact that not much about corporate greed has changed in the last 40 years.

(Two stars out of four.)

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