Oppenheimer and It’s Terrifying Relevancy

Both terrifying and mesmerizing, this monumental achievement in filmmaking will haunt you long after the credits roll.

As one of my most anticipated movies of 2023, Oppenheimer didn’t disappoint. With a filmography that includes the likes of Tenet, Dunkirk, Interstellar, and Inception (to name a fair few), it’s no denying that director Christopher Nolan knows intelligent filmmaking. With that being said, buckle up and amp up your brain power, because Oppenheimer is a fully immense and immersive ride boasting zero CGI effects throughout the entire movie.

The film marks Nolan’s first biopic featuring a historical figure as the protagonist and his second film to be based on an actual event following Dunkirk. The movie also includes the sixth collaboration of Nolan and lead Cillian Murphy ( Murphy’s first shot at a lead role with the director).

As an important story to tell for the present day, it’s no surprise that a film about a person as consequential as Oppenheimer was delivered by one of the greatest directors of our time. Nolan delivers a truly terrifying telling of the “Father of the Atomic Bomb” and the personal and political consequences that would follow. To say he delivers is a cinematic masterpiece of a biopic is an understatement.

Oppenheimer also features a star-studded cast that includes Robert Downey Jr, Emily Blunt, Matt Damon, Florence Pugh, Jason Clarke, Kenneth Branagh and an unrecognizable Gary Oldman (to name a few).

Nolan became interested in doing a film on J. Robert Oppenheimer after actor Robert Pattinson gave the book American Prometheus as a gift to Nolan after Tenet (2020) wrapped production. American Prometheus is the biography of Oppenheimer and is the book Nolan adapted to make his movie. Pattinson was offered a chance to be in the film but Nolan claimed he was too busy with other projects.

CNN writes, “The film has taken on troubling relevance, especially the passages set post-war, documenting an arms race that Oppenheimer warned against. Its examination of his legacy, from the physicist’s perspective and the people around him, forms a devastating and complex coda. ‘Eighty years after the Trinity Test, technological innovation looks like artificial intelligence (AI), Nolan offered, and the potential dangers of ‘unleashing those things on the world.’”

“A lot of the scientists I speak to, a lot of the people who work in the tech sector I speak to, they worry about this,” he added. “They see what they’re doing as their Oppenheimer moment, and they look to his story to give some kind of guidance as to how the relationship between science, technology, government and society should function.” Nolan via CNN

A true master in filmmaking, Christopher Nolan knows no limits in what he can do. I grappled on whether or not to give this a perfect score, and I think I just might. The movie is very dense, and those unfamiliar with the history and real-life characters involved may struggle keeping up (myself included), but I beg you to have patience.

I guarantee you can expect to hear about this movie and it’s entire cast come awards season, including the performances given by Cillian Murphy, Robert Downey Jr. (a big surprise performance), and Emily Blunt (insane monologue given at the end of the film).

It’s relevancy in today’s world is undeniable, and Nolan knows exactly how to connect the dots. See this movie on the biggest screen possible, and be prepared to be fully immersed in it’s three-hour runtime. Believe me…it’s worth your time.