“Theory can only take you so far” 

Christopher Nolan has been one of the premier filmmakers of our generation for over a decade now but with Oppenheimer he may have truly demonstrated his highest capabilities yet. 

This film is a directing feast. A complex and nuanced narrative that isn’t afraid to celebrate and humiliate the work of Oppenheimer in equal measure. Nolan truly transports us into the tormented genius min of a man who changed the fate of humanity forever. 

This film is a haunting and somber exploration of the consequence of knowledge, it fittingly opens with a quote about Prometheus who stole fire from the gods, gave it to man and was punished for all eternity. Suitably this is the journey we witness Oppenheimer undertake. Perhaps Nolan’s best edited film largely thanks to the work of Jennifer Lame. This 3 hour espionage political epic feels like it’s at breakneck speed constantly. We are catapulted into the reality of WW2 and the conflicts that followed as a consequence. Nolan and Lame expertly glide us between timelines seamlessly in a manner that offer maximum contextual understanding g for events and their direct consequences. 

Filled with fantastic performances by Cillian Murphy, Robert Downey Junior and Emily Blunt. The work on display here is awards worthy and perfectly captures the humanity and lack of humanity this situation called for. 

There are certain sequences in this film that are the pinnacle of directing from Nolan (slight spoilers ahead) the decision to demonstrate the trinity test in silence was perfection. Not only was it an excellent subversion of the audiences expectations, creating a beautiful moment of shock and awe. But also because this is the way the atomic bomb works, the fire and mushroom cloud is but a fraction of what the true force of destruction this bomb brings. The wave of energy and catastrophic chain atomic reaction is what truly devastates. 

Nolan is operating on levels I wasn’t even sure he was capable of here and delivers a final scene for the ages. 

PS: THE SCORE!!!!!!!!! Ludwig you are king. 

Ultimately I’m left with this balance of thought about Oppenheimer, yes he was hamstrung g by the fact that others would have created the bomb anyway and it was an inevitable conclusion of his science and work. But he still made the bomb, that’s what I take away from his conversation with Einstein in the end. You still made the choice to do it. You incur the wrath for all eternity. 

Spectacular.