I had high hopes for this movie going in. I love all of Nolan's other movies, and I actually worked as a scientist at Los Alamos for several years (many years after the Manhattan project), and so I'm very familiar with the underlying physics, the New Mexico landscape, and the constant tension between scientific research and security concerns. If anyone was going to enjoy this movie, it was me!
And to be fair, I did basically enjoy it, mostly. Seeing a story I thought I knew fairly well brought to life, including many extra details that I didn't know about, was definitely interesting. The acting is undoubtedly top notch. But is it a Great Movie? Well, no.
The main issue here is that the central thread that the movie hangs on is the meeting to determine whether Oppenheimer's security clearance should be renewed. A secondary thread is the review as to whether Strauss should be appointed commerce secretary. Both of these threads are essentially courtroom dramas with a lot of talking back and forth, which can be pretty dry. But more importantly, the stakes don't feel that high (it's not life or death), and the arguments for and against the people concerned are not that interesting. I get that the movie uses these things as framing devices to cover a lot of more interesting topics, in the form of flashbacks, but it just feels like the balance is off. There's just way too much time spent in the courtroom, especially towards the end of the three hours, and the rest of the content feels fragmented and rushed.
And the famous Trinity test explosion scene that doesn't use any CGI? Yeah, it shows, and not in a good way.
In conclusion, an interesting study of an interesting guy, well acted, and nicely shot. But a bit unfocused and probably 30 minutes too long. 7/10, though I might have given it 8/10 I didn't feel it was so over-rated...
And to be fair, I did basically enjoy it, mostly. Seeing a story I thought I knew fairly well brought to life, including many extra details that I didn't know about, was definitely interesting. The acting is undoubtedly top notch. But is it a Great Movie? Well, no.
The main issue here is that the central thread that the movie hangs on is the meeting to determine whether Oppenheimer's security clearance should be renewed. A secondary thread is the review as to whether Strauss should be appointed commerce secretary. Both of these threads are essentially courtroom dramas with a lot of talking back and forth, which can be pretty dry. But more importantly, the stakes don't feel that high (it's not life or death), and the arguments for and against the people concerned are not that interesting. I get that the movie uses these things as framing devices to cover a lot of more interesting topics, in the form of flashbacks, but it just feels like the balance is off. There's just way too much time spent in the courtroom, especially towards the end of the three hours, and the rest of the content feels fragmented and rushed.
And the famous Trinity test explosion scene that doesn't use any CGI? Yeah, it shows, and not in a good way.
In conclusion, an interesting study of an interesting guy, well acted, and nicely shot. But a bit unfocused and probably 30 minutes too long. 7/10, though I might have given it 8/10 I didn't feel it was so over-rated...