NOTE: our blog started with reviewing Disney movies. We have since expanded to cover more studios. But keep in mind we aren’t fancy critics, just a couple of average folks who like watching movies. We provide our thoughts from his view and her view so you can figure out is a movie worth a date night out.
It seems everyone has been anticipating and talking about Director Christopher Nolans’s new film: Oppenheimer. Andrew has been so excited. As a World War II history enthusiast he couldn’t wait to see the story about the creator of the atom bomb. To be honest this wasn’t even on Julie’s radar, but she is always down for a good historical drama. We are both fans of the director’s previous work, and the cast seemed jam packed with talented folks. Let’s dig into what we thought…
Official Film Synopsis:
Written and directed by Christopher Nolan, Oppenheimer is an IMAX®-shot epic thriller that thrusts audiences into the pulse-pounding paradox of the enigmatic man who must risk destroying the world in order to save it.
The film stars Cillian Murphy as J. Robert Oppenheimer and Emily Blunt as his wife, biologist and botanist Katherine “Kitty” Oppenheimer. Oscar® winner Matt Damon portrays General Leslie Groves Jr., director of the Manhattan Project, and Robert Downey, Jr. plays Lewis Strauss, a founding commissioner of the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission.
Academy Award® nominee Florence Pugh plays psychiatrist Jean Tatlock, Benny Safdie plays theoretical physicist Edward Teller, Michael Angarano plays Robert Serber and Josh Hartnett plays pioneering American nuclear scientist Ernest Lawrence.
Oppenheimer also stars Oscar® winner Rami Malek and reunites Nolan with eight-time Oscar® nominated actor, writer and filmmaker Kenneth Branagh.
The cast includes Dane DeHaan (Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets), Dylan Arnold (Halloween franchise), David Krumholtz (The Ballad of Buster Scruggs), Alden Ehrenreich (Solo: A Star Wars Story) and Matthew Modine (The Dark Knight Rises).
The film is based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning book American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer by Kai Bird and the late Martin J. Sherwin. The film is produced by Emma Thomas, Atlas Entertainment’s Charles Roven and Christopher Nolan.
Oppenheimer is filmed in a combination of IMAX® 65mm and 65mm large-format film photography including, for the first time ever, sections in IMAX® black and white analogue photography.
Nolan’s films, including Tenet, Dunkirk, Interstellar, Inception and The Dark Knight trilogy, have earned more than $5 billion at the global box office and have been awarded 11 Oscars and 36 nominations, including two Best Picture nominations.
His Thoughts on “Oppenheimer”
Andrew: the well-versed history buff
I am really torn on how to rate this film because it was not quite what I expected. I am really into WW2 history and have read a few books on the Manhattan Project so I was very excited to see Oppenheimer. Judging by the trailers that I saw, and the movie being described as a “thriller” I thought it was going to cover more of the actual logistics and science that went into building the “gadget.” However, it really was centered around life events for Oppenheimer. I went back and rewatched one of the trailers and it pretty much included every shot of the bomb that was in the movie. I enjoyed the film, I just wish they went in a slightly different direction.
The movie seemed far too long. I could have done with less of the Senate Confirmation hearing scenes (even though Robert Downey Jr. did a great job). They could have told the post war story of his public perception fall and eventual rise before his death in a quicker way. That would have left more time for material related to the actual bomb. And while the timeline jumps around quite a bit, they do a good job of tying it all together at the end. However, this movie does require viewers to pay close attention to keep up.
There were a few unnecessarily loud and chaotic moments which made me jump. I understand what emotions the filmmakers were trying to convey during those scenes but I found myself move covering my ears than feeling “moved.” I believe they could have toned it down a bit and still gotten the point across.
Also, while Harry Truman did say to Oppenheimer that it was his job to create the bomb but the decision to use it ultimately came down to the President, they made Mr. Truman arrogant in his portrayal. This doesn’t seem to match everything I have read and while he did make that decision, he did not come to it as lightly as the film portrayed. There are a few other historical nit pics but nothing that really mattered to the story.
Just about every actor did an amazing job and some of the visuals were outstanding! Also, if you go back and look at some of the pictures from Los Alamos during that time, they did an authentic job of recreating the sets. I really enjoyed this film and glad I saw it, but probably wouldn’t make it a point to see it again. I appreciated seeing it, but something left me wanting more.
HIS RATING: 3.5 out of 5 “Atom Bombs”
Her Thoughts on “Oppenheimer”
Julie: an enjoyer of historical drama
All I knew going into this movie was that it was about the man who created the Atom Bomb. The movie begins being immediately being thrown into the world of a young physicist, Oppenheimer as he begins his well known career. There are also many timeline jumps from the get-go, moving between different styles of filming technique. Oppenheimer was a film that you had to pay attention to and was a little confusing in the beginning of which time period was which. I found that many sections of the film spent a lot of time in court rooms and I have to say I wasn’t expecting that. I wasn’t necessarily expecting a film packed with action every minute but I was expecting more screen time of stunning visuals and less about people sitting around talking. I don’t want to say I was bored as the story was interesting, but I do feel there were scenes that could have been shortened to get to the same point and maybe mixed in with some more exciting scenes.
The acting overall was superb. Cillian Murphy (Oppenheimer) played the part of this eccentric scientist. And was supported by roles such as Matt Damon playing a General who brought some comedy lines and Emily Blunt as emotional wife kitty. I loved seeing Einstein portrayed in the film too. I do feel there was a lot of his life trying to be crammed into this movie, but at the same time not enough time spent to truly understand some of his unusual personality and relationships and connect with the character. I felt I didn’t care about Oppenheimer as much as I should being the main point of the movie.
The visuals of the bomb were mesmerizing and pretty much what I expected coming from Nolan, it was a long build up to that part of the movie and then more talking after that. While the film style was unique I felt the film lacked enough of the visual show I have come to expect from Nolan. I think a lot of this came down to how the film was marketed. The trailer was full of nothing but bomb scenes and described as a thriller, I did not have expectations of watching court room dialogue that went on forever.
The attention to detail and authenticity seemed very impressive. I can't say I remember much of the score to be honest. I felt some emotion from the film but I think I expected more personal story development and less being told through court room scenes. Overall the quality of the film was beautiful, the actors great, and a unique peek into history. The movie tried to describe the impact that the bomb had on Oppenheimer, but the way those scenes were portrayed with loud noise annoyed me more than moved me. Overall something left me unsatisfied in a way I can’t quite put my finger on. The movie wasn’t terrible by any means, and it was nice to see a movie that was deeper than expected action hero fight scenes. However I still left the theater feeling like it was a good movie, but not something that blew me away.
HIS RATING: 3.5 out of 5 “Atom Bombs”
