‘Oppenheimer’ Review: The Best Film of 2023
Christopher Nolan’s three-hour epic ‘Oppenheimer’ chillingly begins with a quote referencing the tale of Prometheus, a Titan from Ancient Greek tales. Prometheus was said to have stolen fire from Mount Olympus and given it to humans, enraging Zeus in the process. Having given mankind the untapped power of the gods, Zeus had Prometheus tortured for eternity as punishment for his actions.
It’s a fitting way to introduce the film, given that J. Robert Oppenheimer himself was instrumental in giving humanity a force of nature of his own, one with a destructive potential that had never been seen before. In fact, Oppenheimer would go on to be dubbed the ‘American Prometheus’, a nickname that would help define his complicated legacy. This is also the title of the book that ‘Oppenheimer’ is based on, ‘American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer’ written by Kai Bird and Martin J. Sherwin. In said book, an epigraph quoting Science Weekly in 1945 sums up the parallel neatly, writing: “Modern Prometheans have raided Mount Olympus again and have brought back for man the very thunderbolts of Zeus.” Like Prometheus in the Greek tale, Oppenheimer handed humanity a power that would change the world. And like Prometheus, he would be made to reckon with the lasting effects of his ‘gift’ for years to come.
For those familiar with Christopher Nolan’s prior works, it may have been interesting to see that he was attached to direct a biopic. While many films in the genre tend to be standard in form, Nolan’s filmography has been anything but. With mind-bending tales like ‘Memento’ and ‘The Prestige’ and blockbuster hits such as the ‘Dark Knight’ trilogy, ‘Inception’ and ‘Interstellar’, Nolan has always had a knack for the spectacular. Seeing Nolan tackle the story of the man who created the atomic bomb in the Manhattan Project was a fascinating concept, but many were left wondering how he would give it his trademark flare and bombastic nature. From the opening scenes, it was clear that he knew just how to do so.
The film itself tells the story of J. Robert Oppenheimer (Cillian Murphy) and his rise to prominence and eventual work on the Manhattan Project, leading to the creation of the atomic bomb and everything that followed. The story is told in the non-linear fashion that we’ve seen before from Nolan, harping back to ‘Memento’ and ‘Dunkirk’ in the way that different timelines are woven together before intersecting to lead to a connected ending. While the film centers around Oppenheimer himself, it follows two differing perspectives and three different timelines throughout.
We get out first look at our lead character in a flashback, a curly-haired Oppenheimer staring blankly at a puddle, the water rippling from rain drops landing on the surface. He’s deep in thought, scientific theories and ideations flying around in his head — a common theme throughout the film.
As we cut to the future, we’re introduced to an older J. Robert Oppenheimer during his security clearance hearing in 1954. His hair is now grayed but he is again deep in thought, not responding when he is called upon to speak before regaining himself. A title card introduces this perspective to us as ‘Fission’. In the alternate perspective, we cut to Lewis Strauss (Robert Downey Jr.), former head of the Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) in 1959 as he awaits his Senate confirmation hearing regarding his appointment as President Eisenhower’s Secretary of Commerce. This perspective is called ‘Fusion’. In an inspired choice, Nolan chooses to use standard color when the film is in Oppenheimer’s point-of-view (as Nolan calls it, subjective) and black-and-white when it is in Strauss’s point-of-view (what Nolan calls, objective). Because IMAX cameras had never had the capability of filming black-and-white footage before, Nolan and cinematographer Hoyte van Hoytema worked together to secure the first ever lens made specifically for shooting black-and-white IMAX footage, and their efforts were rewarded with crisp and beautiful scenes throughout.
Through Oppenheimer’s recollections at his security clearance hearing, we look back at his life and how he became the man who the world would know him as. We start with Oppenheimer in his college years, a young man who misses home and whose mind is filled with scientific theories and ideas, unable to find the answers that he’s looking for. Eventually going to Germany to study physics, he learns more about the world of quantum physics and finds many of the answers that he had been in search of. In these sequences and throughout the entire film we get looks inside of Oppenheimer’s mind, brilliant practical effects showing atoms, neutrons and protons spinning wildly, interacting, creating new structures. The way that we are put into his perspective through these sequences is one of the highlights of the film, the scenes providing context without a single word being uttered, making us feel even more connected to Oppenheimer as a character. He manages to gain a fair amount of self-confidence during this time, and it reflects in his interactions with the people he meets. He eventually returns to America, bringing the “new physics” with him and becoming a professor at both Cal Tech and Berkley, ready to introduce America to the world of quantum physics.
The film’s perspective shifts from Oppenheimer to Strauss often, especially in the latter half of the story. Scenes move at a rapid pace, going from one to the next as if in rhythm with each other. It’s a testament to Jennifer Lame’s superb editing that the film flows as impressively as it does, never becoming jarring in its presentation. Whether it’s a shift from Oppenheimer’s perspective to Strauss’s or vice versa, Lame makes each scene connect to the next with one perspective often lending importance to the next scene that follows it. In a film that’s three hours long and shifts perspectives and timelines often, it’s incredible just how well put together everything is.
The relationship between Oppenheimer and Strauss is one of the strongest and most crucial aspects of the film, with their on-screen rivalry emitting shades of Mozart and Salieri in ‘Amadeus’. Oppenheimer is the reveled genius, a man on top of the world while Strauss is the jealous onlooker, a man who feels he’s been relegated to being a mortal among a man hailed as a god. The self-righteous Strauss scoffs at the perceived arrogance of Oppenheimer, and their first interactions set the stage for how both of their stories would play out later.
Downey is at the top of his game as Lewis Strauss, giving one of the best performances of his career. His presence is magnetic in every scene he’s in, and the way he shifts emotions as the film goes on showcases his acting prowess, from subdued and poised in his introduction to rageful and spiteful as more events unfold. Downey line deliveries are top notch, but it is the subtleties within his performance that are incredible. Something as simple as a snarl or a glance adds gravitas to many scenes throughout the film.
The entire cast list of ‘Oppenheimer’ is almost as long as the film itself, and everyone brings their A-game. Joining the Manhattan Project crew alone is Matt Damon, who plays General Leslie Groves, the director of the project; Josh Hartnett, who plays fellow professor and scientist Ernest Lawrence; Benny Safdie as scientist and future father of the Hydrogen Bomb Edward Teller; and David Krumholtz as friend to Oppenheimer and scientist Isidor Isaac Rabi. Others include Jack Quaid, Josh Peck, Olivia Thirlby and Dylan Arnold. Alden Ehrenreich offers a great performance as a senate aide who shares scenes with Downey throughout. Also featured is Kenneth Branagh, quickly becoming a Nolan regular, as physicist Niels Bohr. Jason Clarke is the persistent Roger Robb, the prosecutor who questions Oppenheimer in the security clearance hearing and has some remarkable back-and-forth scenes with Murphy at the hearing.
Helping to further expand Oppenheimer’s personal life is his wife Kitty, played fiercely by Emily Blunt. Although Blunt’s role feels smaller than some would hope in the first two acts of the film, she is able to showcase her talents in a great scene in the third act in which she does the verbal battling that her husband was hesitant to do. Oppenheimer’s on-again off-again lover Jean Tatlock is played by Florence Pugh, who in a short amount of screentime makes a big impact on the film. Tatlock’s connections to the Communist Party, given her relationship with Oppenheimer, are one of the central arguments used against Oppenheimer in his security clearance hearing, one that emits memories of the McCarthy era and the unfair system that came with it.
The entire supporting cast is sublime, but not enough can be said about Cillian Murphy’s performance as the film’s titular character. Murphy, who has now worked on six projects with Christopher Nolan, completely transformed into J. Robert Oppenheimer in a role that required him to play a very complicated man, one who was reluctant to even give hints about the things he was feeling. The emotions that Murphy conveys with his features are spectacular. Murphy plays Oppenheimer through decades of his life, from the younger up and coming genius who thought he could outsmart everybody to the restrained and melancholy man whose sense of self was taken from him. Murphy does more with his blue orbs than many can do with an entire monologue, his eyes painting pictures that tell us exactly what Oppenheimer is thinking at any given time. With the IMAX format put to full use, Murphy’s gaze often fills the entire landscape of a scene, and it is just as effective as if there were a major action set-piece taking place.
While ‘Oppenheimer’ doesn’t have any grandiose set-pieces, there was anticipation surrounding how the Trinity Test would be presented in the film. Leading up to its release there had been talk about how Nolan and crew had managed to recreate the imagery of the bomb practically, leaving moviegoers intrigued to see the final product. Simply put, the Trinity Test sequence does not disappoint.
While history tells us the test was a success, Nolan frames it in a way where audiences will be sitting in their seats tensed up to see the outcome. The test sequence is arguably one of the best of Nolan’s career; I found myself gripping the arm rests of my seat, leaning in towards the screen and realizing the entire theater was silent watching it unfold. The imagery of the bomb itself is visceral, equally stunning as it is horrifying. While it may not play out as some expect, it will go down as one of the most stunning feats in IMAX filmmaking.
Part of what made the Trinity sequence and so much of the film so spectacular was Ludwig Göransson’s majestic score. Not enough can be said about how Göransson’s soundtrack elevates an already incredible movie. Göransson’s score elicits feelings of wonder, sense of discovery, horror, and self-reflection, crafting a soundscape that further puts you into the mind of Oppenheimer at his proudest moments, his most anxious and at his most conflicted. Violins, pianos, harps, and more are used to create the sounds of the score, with each having the ability to go from melodic to fretful in a moment’s notice. Sound becomes a character itself at points, with Göransson saying that there’s “about two and a half hours of music in the film”, leaving few sequences of silence given the three-hour runtime. The moments of silence are just as effective as when the score plays as a result. Göransson continues to prove himself a worthy successor to Hans Zimmer as Nolan’s go-to composer, crafting one of the best scores of the decade.
The Trinity Test serves as a climax of sorts to the film, and a standard biopic may have ended things shortly after, but Nolan uses it to set up act three. The final hour of the film is the fallout of the use of the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and the ‘trials’ that Oppenheimer and Strauss are both subjected to. Some may not enjoy the last hour given its slower pace as compared to the first two acts, but I believe it to be where the film’s main themes are best explored and highlighted. Oppenheimer, after all he had done for his country, is subjected to a kangaroo court questioning his loyalty to his country. Strauss believes that he may have finally one-upped Oppenheimer, only to have his own legacy put into question in his own ‘trial’ a few years later because of his treatment of Oppenheimer.
It is here where we see, at its core, what the film is really about. ‘Oppenheimer’, beyond being about the man who created the atomic bomb, is a film that shows the dangers of power, not just in strength, but in all its different forms. The power of the creation itself; one that could either destroy the world or end all war, the latter being Niels Bohr’s hope. The power that a few men hold in the palm of their hands, and the effects it has on the entire world. What some men would do to gain and keep power. The power that a man believes he has, only to lose it in the blink of an eye.
‘Oppenheimer’ is a cautionary tale, but arguably one that also says that it may already be too late. It is not a film that tells the audience to pick a side or to believe a certain ideal, it merely presents what humans created and what we are left to deal with as a result. A modern Prometheus gave mankind another ‘gift’, one more powerful than any we were ever intended to have, and it is now up to the powers that be to wield it responsibly.
J. Robert Oppenheimer was a complicated man, and one who had ambitions that reached beyond the stars. When offered the chance to reach them he abandoned his political ideologies and many of his own ideals to make it happen. He was a man who disassociated himself from his morals in pursuit of these ambitions. It was only when he lost the ability to control the situations in his life that he felt remorse.
Oppenheimer was fighting inner battles in both his personal and professional life, his ego making him think he could manage it all. His affair with Jean Tatlock is akin to his feelings of the atomic bomb itself. At one point in the film, Kitty Oppenheimer offers a quote that can be used to sum up the thesis of Oppenheimer himself. She finds her husband in the woods, sitting on the snowy floor and in tears after Jean Tatlock’s death. Up to that point, he had been cool and confident about the affair he had been having with Tatlock. He was always able to control the situation, telling Tatlock earlier that “Brilliance makes up for a lot.” And suddenly, he couldn’t control it anymore. It was out of his hands. “You don’t get to commit the sin and expect us all to feel sorry for you when there are consequences”, Kitty tells him once she figures out why he is distraught. He cannot disassociate from this. Reality has snuck up on him.
Oppenheimer watches later as the military hauls the atomic bombs they had created away, taking them out of his and the other scientists’ hands. Once the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki occur, Oppenheimer feels the reality set in once again. He has created a power that has killed hundreds of thousands of people. As he puts it in the film, he feels as if he has blood on his hands. His disassociation is offset by the sudden horror he feels. It is from this point on that he is a powerless man, one whose lifelong ambitions were realized only to have them taken away and used for others’ gain.
As his security clearance hearing goes on, Oppenheimer sits and listens as the sham court demeans his character, paints him as an enemy of his country, and is called a potential traitor. “They sit there and pick apart our lives. Why won’t you fight?” Kitty asks her husband. “You think because you let them tar and feather you that the world will forgive you?” She later adds. In Oppenheimer’s mind, he must play both the role of Prometheus and Zeus. He must allow the world to punish him for his actions. He will accept his new public image, that of the ‘Father of the Atomic Bomb’ with a smile, even if he is struggling underneath. He will recite the Bhagavad Gita when speaking the scripture, “Now, I am become death, the destroyer of worlds” to articulate how he felt in the moment the bomb was successfully tested, a quote that would come to be associated with him to this day.
Oppenheimer was a sympathetic figure, but also one who was aware of what he was doing. He believed that he would be able to control the great power he was bringing to the world, just as he had been able to control the narrative of his life for all those years. His own naïveté contributed to his downfall, and self-punishment was his way of atoning for it all. His story is a tragedy, one with ramifications that spread the world over.
Already one of the most popular contemporary directors of his time, ‘Oppenheimer’ is Christopher Nolan’s magnum opus. It feels like the film Nolan has been building towards his entire career, the best of all his prior works put together to form a modern masterpiece. ‘Oppenheimer’ is not just the best movie of the year; it will go down as one of the best films ever made.
