‘Oppenheimer’ – Seriously, One of the Best Films Ever
I had to watch Christopher Nolan’s “Oppenheimer” twice before I could sit myself down and write a review about it. There is so much going on here in front of us to where it is impossible to take everything in right away, and I kept waiting for J. Robert Oppenheimer’s head to explode before the atomic bomb did. Upon a second viewing, I came to better appreciate and understand all of what Nolan was doing here, and I continue to marvel at the brilliant editing job he and Jennifer Lame pulled off. What results is not only one of the best films of 2023, but perhaps of all time.
Like “Memento,” Nolan has constructed this biopic in a defiantly non-linear fashion as he gives us two parallel storylines which are destined to crash into one another. We have the typical biographical story of how J. Robert Oppenheimer began studying science when he was young, and of how his worldview evolved as he went about constructing the bomb which would eventually succeed in ending World War II. Then the story shifts to a few years later when Lewis Strauss (Robert Downey Jr.), one of the original members of the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) is enduring a Senate confirmation hearing to be appointed as Secretary of Commerce. Strauss is the one who put Oppenheimer in a special position of power, and now he wants to crush Oppenheimer in a way which hurts worse than death.
I love biopics like “Oppenheimer” as they breathe life and complexity into human beings most of us have only read about in books. People like him seem so one-dimensional from a distance, but Nolan fleshes him out fully as a man who was a brilliant mind and a loving husband and father, but also a womanizer and quite the chain smoker. Nolan is also aided by a career best performance from Cillian Murphy who succeeds in embodying this historic individual both physically and emotionally.
Not for a second does this film hide away from the politics and implications of the atomic bomb. Oppenheimer and everyone working closely with him knew they were working to build a weapon of mass genocide, and this weighs heavily on everyone’s conscience. The problem, however, is that if they do not build the bomb, someone else will, and the results could have been disastrous had the Nazis beat them to it. Regardless of the intentions, the invention of the atomic bomb and the arrival of the Nuclear Age was inevitable, and nothing would ever be the same.
And, of course, Oppenheimer was turned into a hero for the world to see, and we know what happens to heroes; they are broken down and their images coldly shattered for all the world to see. Seeing him try to regulate nuclear energy in the wake of the Trinity test and the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki was understandable as this was a power which needed to be reigned in and controlled. But like Dustin Hoffman said in “Outbreak” when he learned the military was still going to bomb a small town despite the doctors having a much-needed vaccine, “they want their weapon.”
Seeing Strauss and others take down Oppenheimer serves as a reminder that even decades ago, it was never about the truth as much as it was controlling the narrative. Linking Oppenheimer to communist causes, even though he never was a Communist, reeks of being guilty by association, and all you need is just a little glaring flaw to get the masses pissed at you. At one point he says, “Is anyone ever going to tell the truth about what’s happening here?” Indeed, truth is often a casualty in the realms of power, and it never is revealed right away, maybe even for decades.
There are many memorable images and moments to be found throughout this film. The explosion of the bomb is certainly a highlight as it demonstrates just how triumphant and horrifying this process of discovery was. It also reminded me of a demonstration a science teacher did one day outside of the classroom. He had a student take a pair of books with them and walk far off into a field. Once in position, he had the student slap them together, and the sound of them coming together did not happen until a second afterwards. It remains one of the most memorable science lessons I have ever witnessed, and I was reminded of this when the bomb exploded onscreen here. All you hear at first is silence as those witnessing this historical event can only hear their own baited breath. But when the sound of the explosion arrives, it proves to be quite deafening as it shakes everyone up as much as it does the theater you happen to be watching this cinematic opus in.
The other moments which stand out include those when Oppenheimer discusses theories and life in general with Albert Einstein (the remarkable Tom Conti), and the first meeting we see these two have hangs over the film throughout as we wonder what is said and why Einstein walked away looking so grim. The answer is eventually revealed to us all, and it speaks to how the more things change, the more they stay the same.
Seriously, there is not single weak performance to be found here. Even the smallest of roles carry a lot of weight throughout the film’s three-hour running time. Whether it is Casey Affleck, Jason Clarke, David Krumholtz, Kenneth Branagh, Tony Goldwin or James Remar, every cast member inhabits their roles with tremendous energy as each character has a very strong reason for being featured here. None of them should ever be accused of doing a mere cameo, and this includes the actor who portrays President Harry S. Truman.
Some performances worth singling out however include Robert Downey Jr.’s as Lewis Strauss, and it is truly one of his best ever as he plays this man as someone very knowledgeable about politics and power, but who eventually is undone by his lack of understanding as to what is really going on. Emily Blunt is at her most blunt ever (pun intended) as Oppenheimer’s wife, Katherine, who urges him to take a stand against those out to humiliate and discredit him. Florence Pugh remains an actress willing to go to emotionally raw lengths for a role, and her work here as Jean Tatlock, one of Oppenheimer’s lovers who gets swallowed up anxiety and depression is never less than impressive. And there is no leaving out Matt Damon who makes General Leslie Groves much more than the average military figure we often see in films like these.
But perhaps the real scene stealer is Alden Ehrenreich who portrays a Senate aide to Strauss. At one point he looks to be a hopelessly naïve idealist who has a lot to learn about politics, but then Ehrenreich makes this character into someone more confident and smarter than we are led to believe at first sight. More importantly, his last scene has him telling Strauss exactly what he needs to hear, and it is such a stinging moment to where I almost found myself applauding it.
Like “Goodfellas,” “Oppenheimer” proves to be many cinematic things to me: it is scary, thrilling, an important look into history, a study about the morality of the deadliest weapons mankind has ever invented, of how the narrative is often more important than the truth, and there are some laughs to be had here and there in the process. I live for motion pictures like these. Hopefully the Academy will not snub Nolan and company here when Oscar season comes around as they have in the past. “Oppenheimer” is a monumental cinematic achievement, and one which needs to be seen on the biggest screen in your neighborhood. More importantly, seeing it once will never be enough. I believe this is a film which will be studied endlessly throughout the years, and not just because of the brilliant editing job.
Oppenheimer brought us into the atomic age which eventually evolved into the Cold War involving nuclear weapons. We never really left the Cold War now, did we?
* * * * out of * * * *
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