It's always a thrilling event when a film comes along and shatters the conventional thinking of what type of style or genre a movie should be. What's originally perceived as being a traditional summer blockbuster or biographical drama can turn out to be a mixture of both, ultimately making for a profound moviegoing experience that's equally entertaining as it is thought-provoking. That appears to be the winning combination that Universal Pictures has with Christopher Nolan's newest cinematic feature, Oppenheimer. Placing longtime collaborator, Cillian Murphy in the leading role for the first time, the filmmaking duo set out to craft an engrossing biographical drama, which ultimately ranks among being their finest work.
Based on the 2005 biography American Prometheus by Kai Bird and Martin J. Sherwin, the film covers the career of American theoretical physicist J. Robert Oppenheimer from his early studies to his direction of the Manhattan Project during World War ll, the Trinity test, and his eventual fall from grace due to his 1954 security hearing. For both Nolan and Murphy, Oppenheimer represents the ideal opportunity for both men to put their full creative talents on display while churning out what's arguably their most mature work to date. Though it's strictly dialogue- driven, Oppenheimer presents a complicated portrait of a controversial American figure whose guidance altered the course of human history.
When it comes to the performances, Nolan generates full excitement and dedication from his star-studded cast. Cillian Murphy is pitch perfect as J. Robert Oppenheimer with him flawlessly portraying different layers of his character from his uneasy balance of juggling his work and personal life to his supervising of the Manhattan Project, and his realization of what he unearthed with the Trinity test. Robert Downey Jr. delivers a stunning performance as AEC chairman, Lewis Strauss, who enlists then ends up deeply resenting Oppenheimer for publicly humiliating him. Downey's performance is compelling with him completely disappearing into character and making the audience despise him the further the story unfolds. Emily Blunt is terrific as Oppenheimer's wife and ex-communist Kitty, whose hurt by revelations regarding her husband's infidelity yet still remains loyal to him. Florence Pugh also impresses as Jean Tatlock, a member of the Communist Party USA, whom Oppenheimer has an intermittent affair with. The rest of Oppenheimer's cast is filled with high quality actors who all deliver strong and dedicated work including Matt Damon as Gen. Leslie Groves who assists Oppenheimer in developing the atomic bomb, Josh Hartnett as Robert's colleague Ernest Lawrence, with other noteworthy additions such as Rami Malek, Jason Clarke, Tony Goldwyn, James Remar, Kenneth Branagh, Matthew Modine, and Alden Ehrenreich.
With Oppenheimer's directing, Nolan delivers a visually striking biographical drama that looks and feels epic with him once again utilizing large-format IMAX cameras to give audiences the maximum experience of witnessing the story on the big screen, along with capturing the facial expressions of actors during key pivotal moments. An example is the films signature moment involving the Trinity test. What begins as a quiet and eerie moment stunningly captures the reactions of everyone involved, while showcasing impressive non-CGI visuals before delivering a hugely effective sound effect. As for the cinematography, Oppenheimer's use of both color and black-and-white scenes are presented to represent the shifting perspectives on the story with the latter moments meant to be objective. The score by Ludwig Goransson heavily features the use of a violin as it's stylistic centerpiece, while carrying a brilliant mixture of hair-raising tension along with some well-composed emotional bits that tonally represent the main character. With a running time boasting three hours, Oppenheimer's pacing always keeps things moving without ever truly feeling like its actual length.
In terms of writing, Oppenheimer stands as being one of Nolan's strongest scripts with him making each of the films key characters intriguing while showing one man's realization and devastation of what he ultimately unleashed upon the world and living with the consequences of it. The script specifically focuses on Oppenheimer's studies as a young anxiety-driven physicist while covering the part of his career that led to him being enlisted to direct The Manhattan Project, and his reaction to the creation of the world's first atomic bomb and its eventual usage. Much like Nolan's previous films including Memento, The Prestige, and Interstellar, he once again tells the story from a non-linear perspective with the script not only being written from a first-person perspective but shifts back-and-forth from Oppenheimer being questioned during his 1954 security hearing to Downey Jr.'s character Strauss being interviewed. The script tackle's themes pertaining to power, responsibility, legacy, and ultimately the consequences of one's actions with Oppenheimer grasping the full weight of his creation and delivering powerful quotes such as him proclaiming: "Now I have become death, the destroyer of worlds." Another hard-hitting moment includes his character visiting the White House and admitting to then President Harry S. Truman that he has "blood on his hands," representing the direct contrast between Truman's excitement over the usage of the atomic bombs and Oppenheimer's guilt for doing so is heavily politically driven with Oppenheimer ultimately losing his security clearance due to his association with known members of the communist party. The conflict between Oppenheimer and Strauss is also played out here with the latter shown resenting Oppenheimer for being publicly humiliated and believing that his character was denigrated with Oppenheimer privately speaking to Einstein during a key flashback sequence, that reveals the main characters regret for building the atomic bomb as well as the realization that he must live with his decision.
What could've easily ended up being a bland history channel special is made into something more intriguing, and ultimately compelling largely thanks to Nolan's remarkable directing talent and Murphy's tour-de-force performance. For true cinema lovers, Oppenheimer is a unique cinematic experience that's not to be missed and should be viewed on the best format available.
Final Verdict: A Must See for Christopher Nolan, Cillian Murphy fans and cinema lovers.
Images Courtesy of Universal Pictures
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