Review: Oppenheimer (2023)

Oppenheimer

Rating

Director

Christopher Nolan

Screenplay

Christopher Nolan

Length

3h 00m

Starring

Cillian Murphy, Emily Blunt, Robert Downey Jr., Alden Ehrenreich, Matt Damon, Florence Pugh, Josh Hartnett, Casey Affleck, Rami Malek, Kenneth Branagh, Benny Safdie, Jason Clarke, Dylan Arnold, Tom Conti, James D’Arcy, David Dastmalchian, Dane DeHaan, Tony Goldwyn, Jefferson Hall, David Krumholtz, Matthew Modine, Scott Grimes

MPAA Rating

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Review

As increasing tensions with Russia rise once again, it seems fitting that Oppenheimer sets forth the events that led to those initial tensions in aftermath of World War II.

For too many, the Cold War still haunts their memories of fallout shelters and threats of nuclear annihilation and that fear stems from one event, the creation of the atomic bomb. Brought in by the U.S. government hoping to beat Nazi Germany to the punch of creating one, they choose one of the foremost theoretical physicists in the world, in spite of his wide travels of Europe. J. Robert Oppenheimer (Cillian Murphy) is a brilliant scientist, but his curiosity and desire to advance technology lead him on a collision course with history.

This film follows Oppenheimer from his time as a young physics student to the head of the Manhattan Project as he works with some of the leading scientists in the world to put together a nuclear weapon to his post-Hiroshima/Nagasaki efforts to foster nuclear disarmament, which earned him a secret investigation that brought down the man who orchestrated it, Atomic Energy Commission chair Lewis Strauss (Robert Downey Jr.). There’s a lot of ground to cover in this 3-hour biopic, but director Christopher Nolan does a fantastic job of keeping things moving while skillfully explaining to the audience some of the more esoteric concepts on display.

Writing your own screenplay like Nolan has gives you an intimate knowledge of the subject matter, but it also keeps you from seeing some of the flaws. While it’s a lot of years to go over, it still feels like it drags a bit through its middle hour. Still, most of his more excessive tendencies, the ones that marred films like Interstellar are kept thankfully in check.

The slow realization that Oppenheimer makes about the destructiveness of his efforts might sit poorly with audiences who expect him to come to understand its devastating capabilities sooner. However, as an early scene with him trying to poison his professor shows, it isn’t until after a lot of dwelling that he comes to that conclusion and attempts to rectify it. At that point, perhaps it’s too late, especially against an administration desperate to label him as a malcontent and a foreign spy.

The film’s performances are all solid, especially Murphy in the lead role. His shift from wide-eyed optimist to cog in the political machine to anti-nuclear activist is convincing with the toll of years weighing heavily on his face. Nolan has always known how to use Murphy well and he might well have given him the role of his career. That’s not to demean anyone else in the film. Downey Jr., Josh Hartnett, and Florence Pugh all deliver strong performances. Emily Blunt as Oppenheimer’s wife has some great scenes, but they build up almost out of nowhere. Her third act emergence as a key emotional force of anger in the film feels disingenuous. It’s an underwritten role for an actor who deserves better.

That said, there is an utter sour note in the film and its the cameo of Gary Oldman as President Harry S. Truman. His scenery chewing abomination is tacky.Truman was oft said to have defended the decision to save hundreds of thousands of lives by dropping the bomb, but that decision-making process is given short shrift and the nuance of any such event is marred by the flippant dismissal of Oppenheimer. It’s a crass moment that wasn’t needed at least not without more context, even if rooted in strong anecdotal evidence.

Anyone leaving this film should take to heart Oppenheimer’s quote recited twice in the film. The first is as the optimist sharing conjugal relations with Pugh’s character, reciting from the Hindu scripture the Bhagavad-Gita, “Now I am become Death, the destroyer of worlds.” It is an instructive quote for if his character did not fully understand its salience upon its first utterance, his late-film use of the phrase drives the point home effectively.

Oppenheimer is a film about cycles and patterns, such as what Oppenheimer himself attempted to bring to theoretical physics and ultimately to applied physics. His theories are scientific brilliance, but the end result is incredibly tragic. It exemplifies not just the difficulty of advancing technology without harming others but also the challenge of coming to terms with what’s created afterwards. It takes a noble mind to recognize one’s culpability in that and this film enables the viewer to recognize that and honor Oppenheimer’s legacy however challenging it might be.

Oscar Prospects

Guarantees: Picture, Directing, Original Screenplay, Original Score, Film Editing, Cinematography, Sound
Probables: Actor (Cillian Murphy), Supporting Actor (Robert Downey Jr.), Production Design, Costume Design, Makeup & Hairstyling
Potentials: Supporting Actress (Emily Blunt)