Christopher Nolan has once again blown me away with his directing, unique style, and cinematography in a film about "the father of the atomic bomb".
To summarise the plot of the film, in 1943 Robert J Oppenheimer became the director of the Los Alamos Laboratory, which was the Manhattan Project's site for building the atomic bomb. This bomb was made to be used against Hitler in the war, but following his defeat, it is used against Japan and dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. It was then debated whether the atomic bomb was necessary in Japan's surrender, and Oppenheimer's ideas and views are attacked by scientist Edward Teller (Benny Safdie) and Lewis Strauss (Robert Downey Jr), the chair of the US Atomic Energy Commission. Through a non-linear timeline (a common occurrence in Nolan's films) we see the effects that the atomic bomb had on Oppenheimer's reputation and the effects it will have on mankind.
The acting in this film was brilliant, Cillian Murphy gives an amazing performance as Robert J Oppenheimer, his thin figure and physicality is a perfect image of Oppenheimer's real life silhouette. Murphy's acting is reserved but is still able to bring alive the emotional, vulnerable, complexity of Oppenheimer's character as he comes to realise the the devastation that his bomb will lead to. Robert Downey Jr, surprised me with how strong his performance was in every scene he was in, his acting kept me entertained and hooked throughout the long court scenes, and I think it is one of his best performances. All the supporting cast gave amazing performances as well, especially Florence Pugh, Emily Blunt and Matt Damon.
Christopher Nolan shot the film on Imax 70mm film, allowing a higher level of detail in the images on screen. This was beautifully shown in the scene when the atomic bomb finally goes off, as we are engulfed by the images of the explosion. Nolan also uses a lot of close up shots which allowed me to sympathise with Oppenheimer, and kept me absorbed in the tension on screen. The soundtrack for the film added to the tension, Ludwig Göransson's soundtrack for this film was beautiful, it perfectly accompanied the images, and allowed for the film to have a quick pace despite most of it being long scenes of talking. Sound design is integral in Nolan's films, here the sound is used to portray the power of the bomb as when the sound is finally heard it goes through you and you feel it in your chest. Nolan also uses it as a way to present Oppenheimer's guilt and stress after the bomb is dropped in Japan, this is shown through the repeated use of the atomic sound effects.
Oppenheimer lived up to the hype, Nolan was able to create a heart pounding, immersive experience. Even though this film is 3 hours long, and contains no action but mainly dialogue it was still able to keep me engaged throughout. Nolan put his own style and take on a real life story, and didn't just make a simple film about the story of the atomic bomb. Nolan used his non-linear structure and unique visual style to portray the denial and guilt that Oppenheimer experienced, and the devastating effects that the atomic bomb had and will have on our future.
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