An American-British biopic thriller; A story about physicist J. Robert Oppenheimer, appointed to develop and design the atomic bomb. After his scientific team's work came to fruition, he faced the consequences of speaking truth to power. This is a character study of political history based on the biography, American Prometheus, by Kai Bird and Martin J. Sherwin. It isn't an emotionally impactful drama, but suspense is developed from the plot and its chronicling of true events and real people. A screenwriter has a prerogative to tell the story they want to tell; this one is how the main character is treated. Despite its meticulous, fact-based psychodrama, it is a broad story. The theme is the contradictions inherent in human personality, which can bear a great burden for one and all, and how we cannot know truth with perfect accuracy, much like the uncertainty principle of physics. But as a representation of true events, it shows so little examination of the shock of one having built the bomb that could destroy the world, which begs the question of how mass killings would have had an effect on Oppenheimer, which isn't answered. Also, it ignored the crucial roles British science and the Australian physicist Dr Mark Oliphant played in jump-starting the quest. A tour de force from Cillian Murphy, who harnesses the anguish, guilt, gloom, and haughtiness of the title character in a layered performance. The optics captivate, which they must, and they haunt, as they should, given the enormity of real-life events. They are also brilliant at showing how ambition and morality can end up in silos. Exposition was critical for the plot, so great minds of the age who had varied involvement in the arms race were introduced. The first forty-five minutes worked hard with biographical detail. A hiatus in its accompanying musical score led the way for suspense to build to a gripping centrepiece sequence wherein the director's expertise in choreography was evident. Long-feature films need to earn emotional engagement. The third hour's pacing, with its long governmental hearings and political scrapping, was dense. Overall, a bold film about a complicated legacy with many strong supporting performances. Strong visuals and brilliant sound design.
Review of Oppenheimer
