𝔦𝔥8𝔤𝔬𝔟𝔩𝔦𝔫𝔰’s review published on Letterboxd:
This review may contain spoilers.
Barbenheimer - Part II
Prometheus stole fire from the gods and gave it to man.
For this he was chained to a rock and tortured for eternity.
An incredible, weighted, and intricate look at a complicated historical figure and the events surrounding one of the darkest points in American history.
The film chugs along at an incredible pace as we see the step by step ramp up of the timeline of events. I seriously didn't feel a lot of the films length due to how well paced it was. A lot of this was noticeably aided by the ever-present score that adds a feeling of constantly ramping tension, all leading up to the trinity test. Which is without a doubt one of the most awe-inspiring sequences I've seen in any film of the past few years. The music drops for what seems like the first time in the film, and there's a visual variety of impressionistic imagery (which is used in various points of the films) that all makes this.
Punctuated by the arguably even more haunting and impactful post-test rally scene. The weight of the destructive power he's created begins to crush him as people cheering are contrasted by visions of death. And we realize the chugging sounds we've been hearing throughout the film are the sounds of the cheering crowd. It's an amazingly haunting and devastating scene.
I mostly really enjoyed how the film treated the politics of Oppenheimer and the time he was in, and the weight of the creation of the bomb. There's also a lot of themes and messages of mccarthyism, left-wing politics, and guilt that resonated with me. It thankfully didn't shy away from portraying the evils of America's use of fear and the bomb, and did so in some interestingly subtle and not-so-subtle ways. The scenes involving the discussion of the use of the bomb on Japan, and the post Hiroshima meeting with Truman are also major standouts for this dark tone.
The reveal of the conversation with Einstein at the end is such an impactful ending. Really ends with on such a ominous and bleak tone, with dread of the future and a feeling of the beginning of the end. Which is exactly how a film on this topic should end.
𝔦𝔥8𝔤𝔬𝔟𝔩𝔦𝔫𝔰 liked these reviews
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