Grade: A-
Phrases like “see it on the biggest screen you can” get tossed around an awful lot. However, if there’s ever a movie this summer – or ever, for that matter – that earns that adage, it’s Oppenheimer. My viewing of it in IMAX was justified within the opening 5 minutes. I first became acquainted with director Christopher Nolan’s work through his Memento, which I would have named the best movie of 2001 if it weren’t for David Lynch’s Mulholland Drive. Memento had to settle for #2. Since then, his impressive track record has included Insomnia, the Christian Bale Batman trilogy, Inception, Interstellar, and Dunkirk. I wasn’t sure before, but now I’d say Oppenheimer cements his place among the list of greatest living directors.
If Terrence Malick and Oliver Stone collaborated on a project, it might look something like this movie. It plays like a feature-length trailer or montage. The scenes are short and the score is very prevalent. The cutting style and frequent jumping back and forth between B&W and color made me think of Stone’s Nixon and JFK. The sound, and sometimes sudden lack of sound, is tremendously effective – particularly if you see it on the biggest screen possible. And, naturally, you’re going to hear some noise in a movie about the father of the atomic bomb. Dr. J. Robert Oppenheimer was a brilliant theoretical physicist who gained the most notoriety for being the director of the Los Alamos Laboratory in the days of World War II. Various generals, admirals, presidents, wives, and mistresses are paraded on (like characters in a Shakespeare history play) by a large supporting cast of recognizable faces. Lots of yelling, crying, debriefing, and smoking.
Some of them do career-best work. Robert Downey Jr. is still great when he plays sarcastic, emotionally aloof Robert Downey Jr. – but here, aged up and stripped of that crutch, he is free to let loose and ACT, which he does in one of his best performances. I’ve not been shy to say that Florence Pugh is one of my favorite actresses. I have seen all of her live-action movies since Midsommar. Her presence here is important and indelible. Emily Blunt as Kitty Oppenheimer is powerful and heartbreaking. Jason Clarke (Zero Dark Thirty, Mudbound, Pet Sematary 2019) plays a smaller role that might not get much attention in critic reviews, but I really enjoyed what he literally and artistically brought to the table. You’ll also spot Matt Damon, Tony Goldwyn, Kenneth Branagh, Josh Hartnett, Alex Wolff, Matthew Modine, Benny Safdie, Rami Malek, and Casey Affleck.
And always bobbing at the top of the voluminous pot of stew is Cillian Murphy as Oppenheimer. With his gorgeous blue (almost clear) eyes and specific, memorable facial features, he doesn’t give you a showy Oscar clip portrayal. His honest, understated work provides the through-line. An actor is gifted if I can equally believe them as a hero and a villain. I rooted for Murphy in 28 Days Later, and “hated” him in Red Eye and as the Scarecrow in Nolan’s Batman movies.
I’m going to be honest: I didn’t always understand exactly what was happening. Sometimes my autism spectrum takes over and I check out, particularly in talky biopics – but if there’s a craft involved, I can always at least appreciate it on that level. Everything about Oppenheimer is so gripping, emotionally charged, and played with intention. When the bomb does finally go off, don’t just look at the center of the screen, as you might tend to do. There are sights to admire in every corner. A mushroom cloud is eerily beautiful, isn’t it? This is the kind of film that you see, then research the true story, then see again and get even more. All I can tell you is I got the music, even if I didn’t get every figurative lyric. Oppenheimer is a 3 hour ride that rarely lets up. I could have watched these middle aged white men and long-suffering women yell, cry, debrief, and smoke at each other all day.
Grade: A-
Film Reviews by Mark 
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