There are few things as satisfying as hyping up a movie, game, or any other piece of entertainment and having that thing actually live up to the hype and then some. Stuff like that feels rare nowadays. Maybe it always has been. I don’t know, you be the judge of that. What I do know is that Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer has utterly eclipsed any and all expectations, and I couldn’t be happier about it.
I’m not even really sure where my hype for Oppenheimer came from originally. I’m not the biggest Christopher Nolan fan in the world—I enjoy his work, but there are many other directors I like better—and biopics can be hit or miss for me. I think it was because one of my friends got super hyped for it first, and then as more trailers came out, I started to realize the potential for this one. And, again, it definitely lived up to it all.
Cillian Murphy as J. Robert Oppenheimer
In case it wasn’t already obvious from the title alone, Oppenheimer is a thrilling and oftentimes haunting biopic about the titular J. Robert Oppenheimer, the “father of the atomic bomb.” Based on the 2005 biographical novel American Prometheus, the film follows Oppenheimer, played brilliantly by Cillian Murphy, as he spearheads the development of one of the deadliest weapons known to mankind. Beyond that, however, the film dives deep into Oppenheimer’s psyche as he comes to grips with the harrowing consequences of his actions, and viewers are similarly forced to ponder the gravity of the moral dilemma at the heart of the story.
This is quite possibly Nolan’s best film to date. It’s definitely his best on a technical level, at the very least, as it features all of his trademarks in full effect. The story is expertly written and displayed across several time periods, linked together with crisp editing and effortlessly held aloft by a cavalcade of phenomenal performances. It shouldn’t be this easy to sit through three hours of people talking about science and politics, but it is, thanks to the film’s perfect pacing. As far as I’m concerned, this is truly a Christopher Nolan masterclass.
Robert Downey Jr. as Lewis Strauss
But even beyond the usual Nolan norms, Oppenheimer does everything any good film should do. There is a clear understanding of tone throughout the three-hour runtime. The story begins on a relatively upbeat note, as Oppenheimer is so enraptured with the beauty of theoretical physics. Likewise, he meets many interesting characters and develops fast friendships, all of which is fairly endearing to watch. It doesn’t take long, however, for all of that to be completely twisted around, as Oppenheimer is shoved headlong into the throes of the Manhattan Project. And as everything progresses, the tone only grows more melancholy—at times, it’s even downright disturbing.
The scenes of the scientists preparing and eventually detonating the bomb at the Trinity test are particularly well done. What’s more, there’s one moment where Oppenheimer delivers a speech to the people of Los Alamos following the bombing of Hiroshima, and it’s possibly one of the most haunting things I’ve ever watched. And that’s to say nothing of the ending, which is sure to leave a heavy impression in the minds of everyone watching. Tense and dense are the two key words I use to describe this film, overall. It’s also likely to leave you with an abundance of existential dread.
Florence Pugh as Jean Tatlock and Cillian Murphy as J. Robert Oppenheimer
To touch on the pacing again, it’s surprising how fast this movie feels, since it’s also not totally difficult to keep track of everything that’s going on. For what this story is trying to do, it’s all fairly straightforward, but Nolan uses his talents to make it feel so much larger than life, because in many ways, it is. Sound, lighting, mesmerizing visual effects, and the acute utilization of space are used to great effect in this regard—the cinematography as a whole is spot on—especially since the director can’t fall back on his usual action sequences to spice things up. He has to rely on other filmmaking tricks and the skills of his actors to continually draw viewers in.
Speaking of the skills of the actors, there isn’t a single bad performance in this entire movie. Cillian Murphy as J. Robert Oppenheimer delivers what is arguably the best performance of his career. Every scene he is in—which is nearly all of them—is brimming with flavor and intensity. He essentially carries this movie on his back, perfectly conveying the vast emotional depth of Oppenheimer’s mind. But that’s really only the tip of the iceberg, because the film is otherwise chock full of outstanding performances.
Matt Damon as Leslie Groves
Murphy’s co-stars Emily Blunt, Matt Damon, Robert Downey Jr., and Florence Pugh are all equally exceptional. I can definitely agree with the critical consensus, though, that Florence Pugh as Jean Tatlock basically got shafted, but what she’s given is still absolutely wonderful. Emily Blunt as Kitty Oppenheimer, on the other hand, sits as a stoic rock in this story. Matt Damon in the role of Leslie Groves also delivers on all fronts, to the surprise of no one. And while I’ve always been a fan of RDJ since the onset of his Iron Man days, I’m so elated to see him excel in something other than a Marvel property; he’s essentially the secondary protagonist of the film, and he’s incredible in every one of his scenes.
Oppenheimer also features an abundance of supporting actors and actor cameos, to the point that it’s almost egregious. But even when some of these guys pop up for even just a single scene, everything they do with their time is flawless. To name only a handful, we have: Josh Hartnett as Ernest Lawrence, Benny Safdie as Edward Teller, Rami Malek as David Hill, Jack Quaid as Richard Feynman, Casey Affleck as Boris Pash, Kenneth Branagh as Niels Bohr, Jason Clarke as Roger Robb, and Gary Oldman as Harry Truman. And trust me, that’s only scratching the surface.
Cillian Murphy as J. Robert Oppenheimer and Emily Blunt as Kitty Oppenheimer
Moving away from the talent in front of the camera, there’s one other aspect behind the camera that I have to touch on, and that’s the score. Composed by Ludwig Göransson, the score of Oppenheimer is jaw-droppingly good. As previously mentioned, sound is a critical aspect to why this film works so well, and a large portion of that comes from the music. Every note works to accentuate the emotions of every scene, with many tracks heightening suspense and adding further tension to the already gripping drama. And while many songs feature similar motifs and themes, none of them ever feel repetitive. The music is so good that I’ve actually been listening to it on Spotify lately, separated from the movie. “Can You Hear The Music” and “Destroyer of Worlds” are particular standouts for me.
This is, then, all to say nothing about Oppenheimer’s release window, which couldn’t have been more perfectly timed. In light of the current state of the world, this film stands as perhaps one of the most pertinent pieces of cinema in the modern age. Nowadays, it seems like humanity is perpetually inching closer and closer towards a self-inflicted annihilation. In some ways, we may have J. Robert Oppenheimer to thank (or blame) for that. He let the atomic genie out of the bottle, and there’s truly no putting it back. Oppenheimer reconciles this fact, and while it doesn’t necessarily offer much in the ways of hope, it certainly serves as a cautionary tale. And the way I look at it, the more people who see it, the better.
A glimpse of the practical visual effects featured in Oppenheimer.
At the end of it all, Oppenheimer is the kind of movie that tells me the art of filmmaking isn’t dead. Films such as this are perhaps the most important ones to watch, because they will surely leave you feeling something profound—it definitely left me viscerally shaken. This is also undoubtedly one of the most relevant movies I’ve seen in quite a while, and amidst the current onslaught of computer-generated hokum that bigger studios have been pumping out lately, it’s a rare gem. So please, do yourself a favor and go see Oppenheimer. For whatever it’s worth, it’s got my full seal of approval.