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Oppenheimer Review

Zachary Baxter

Jul 22, 2023 • 3 min read

The newest Christopher Nolan Film tackles the heavy subject of the most powerful weapon in history, and heavy is the perfect description of this film.

Heavy as a Star

This film made me feel goosebumps in some scenes as the weight that Oppenheimer is under is given to the audience through the visuals and audio. The constant tension of Oppenheimer becomes overwhelming as all of the noises not only in the world but in his mind, comes crashing out of the speakers. The phycological toll that being the father of the A-bomb would have on somebody who is trying to be a decent person must be horrific. The very weight of the world is on his shoulders as the atomic arms race begins.

Lost in Another World

Cillian Murphy was phenomenal as Oppenheimer, and I was completely immersed in his performance. He came off as someone who is a societal anomaly, who has such a mind to pull all of this people together and actually deliver part of the sun. My favorite part of the film was not building the bomb but instead the aftereffects of it, and Cillian did a great job being someone so torn about how the thing he created is used and what mark he left on the world.

Side Characters

All of the side characters were fantastic and served important roles in the film. Emily Blunt as Kitty was incredible and stole most of the scenes she was in. Oppenheimer and Kitty had a deep connection and great chemistry immediately, but even she couldn't understand him, it showed how alone Oppenheimer was even though he was surrounded by friends and family. Florence Pough was also great and showed how weak a person like Oppenheimer can be in his attempts to be good but doing it in the wrong ways. Matt Damon was the funniest character in the movie, which offered very refreshing levity. I think the greatest side character though was Robert Downey Jr. as Strauss.

The Strauss Affair (Slight Spoilers)

I have a hard time calling Strauss a side character because part of the film is from his perspective, but this is not his story however. Robert Downey Jr. did a brilliant job of playing this deeply insecure and vindictive man. He feels as though he is a god in the political realm and wants to crush his opponents. My favorite part about him is how his view is black and white while Oppenheimer's view is in color, showing how Oppenheimer view things with nuance, while Strauss sees things as good and evil, or more appropriately, with him or against him. He is the antagonist of the film as he represents everything that Oppenheimer is worried about regarding his bomb, the never-ending development and expansion of the nuclear bomb.

Summary

Christopher Nolan and everyone who worked on this film delivered something that can instill more fear than any horror movie into your heart. They gave us a tale where Prometheus delivered humans fire from the sun, and we wait to see if humanity burns their forest down with it. I give Oppenheimer...