Worth: $16.50
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Cast:
Cillian Murphy, Emily Blunt, Matt Damon, Robert Downey Jr., Florence Pugh, Josh Hartnett, Kenneth Branagh
Intro:
...epic, fascinating and often heartbreaking.
In terms of historical figures, you don’t get much more infamous than J. Robert Oppenheimer. Widely known as the “father of the atomic bomb”, ol’ mate Oppie basically shepherded the first active nukes into use against Japan at the end of WWII. And then, of course, he had to live with the consequences of his brilliant, curious mind. Was he a villain or misunderstood hero? Did he ever truly come to terms with what he had wrought upon this world or did he honestly believe he had “become death, destroyer of worlds”? The answers in Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer are far from definitive, but the journey in learning them is epic, fascinating and often heartbreaking.
Oppenheimer is the story of one Julius Robert Oppenheimer (Cillian Murphy), a theoretical physicist whose genius is undeniable but whose interactions with his fellow humans is a little less than stellar. Through an artfully fractured timeline we see Oppie’s early years at uni, his initial career triumphs, and his work on The Manhattan Project. However, even more fascinating are the later years when forces in the American government tried to discredit the man due to a mixture of red scare hysteria and professional jealousy. Add to that the various loves of Oppie’s life (played superbly by Florence Pugh and Emily Blunt) and professional friendships with historical figures like Albert Einstein (Tom Conti), and you’ve got a film that covers a lot of ground. In fact, even at a whopping 180 minutes in length, Oppenheimer often moves at dizzying speed, which leads to some plot strands feeling better developed than others.
Anchoring the whole thing is Cillian Murphy’s performance, which is beautifully tense and icy, showcasing a man who was smart enough to open Pandora’s Box but too ignorant of human nature to understand that military forces would be more than happy to use what came pouring out of it. Robert Downey Jnr. also does wonderful work as Lewis Strauss, delivering a nuanced study of a man with a long term and unique relationship with Oppie. In fact, everyone is pretty bloody great here, with Matt Damon, Rami Malek, Kenneth Branagh and Josh Hartnett in pivotal roles of various sizes, and a bunch of other familiar faces that will prompt you to mutter, “Oh, it’s that guy!”
On the downside, this is a huge film which can lead to certain stretches feeling a little unfocused. The “is Oppie a communist?” subplot gets a lot of screen time and doesn’t really feel essential until the third act. Plus, those hoping to get more of a deep-dive into the specific science of building the bomb may be a little disappointed as it’s rarely the main concern. Still and all, this is Christopher Nolan stretching himself as a director and really digging into the emotional core of his characters, something he’s been notoriously unwilling to do in the past. Add to this the genuinely awesome power of the bomb test sequences and some of Oppenheimer’s vivid, stark hallucinations, and you’ve got a film that is at times terrifying in its intensity.
Talky, detail-obsessed and not exactly dripping with sentimentality and uplifting moments, Oppenheimer certainly won’t be for everyone. But for those who want to experience a deft and unique look at a divisive historical character bolstered by superb performances and a renowned director’s best work in years, Oppenheimer will hit with megaton force.
