THE AMERICAN PROMETHEUS 

THE PARADOX OF OPPENHEIMER’S ATOMIC BOMB PROJECT

Prometheus stole fire from the gods to bequeath humanity with this essential force of life. As a punishment for this act, Prometheus was chained to a rock with an eagle swooping down eating his liver time and time again an endless torment till eternity. The early years leading to the events of Second World War would witness the reincarnation of Prometheus in the form of a man who would be known as the Daddy of The American Atom Bomb; Robert J. Oppenheimer. Oppenheimer would ‘steal’ or rather apt the German idea and gift it to the US scientists working on principles of quantum physics, thermos nuclear warfare, theoretical physics and the science of particles reacting to certain fissures.  

Christopher Nolan’s films in which the last hour of the movie concludes with the protagonist’s course to the path undertaken which either leads to redemption or damages his/her credibility.  Oppenheimer is a blend of both. Oppenheimer’s character played by Irish American actor Cillian Murphy is German in terms of dressing and mannerisms but has an American accent which is not even a bit accentuated (much less a German American accent) considering the fact that he has spent most of his formative years in Germany and England. His constant smoking either by cigarette or pipe is another trait to his erratic personality which he probably uses as a way to relieve his mental stress given the lawsuits he faces in relation to the project. The process of chain reaction in the making of an atom bomb is a bit oversimplified but then again done so that an ordinary layman is able to comprehend the subject matter. With no reliance on CGI the film uses real life footage of explosions, chain reaction and the universal phenomena according to Oppenheimer’s visualization. The film switches from present to past, past to present in a series of flashbacks but as far as dialogue delivery is considered no such dialogues can be mentioned which leave a lasting impression on the minds of the audience. No great directorial creativity has been employed rather the scenes have been shot in a manner typical to all of Nolan’s movies be it any genre of film. It’s the screenplay that is compelling and captivating with stupendous performances by Cillian Murphy, Matt Damon and Robert Downey Jr. with Robert doing the most justice to his rule as American statesmen Lewis Strauss coupled with impressive prosthetics to his character. The scientific equations shown in the movie don’t speak for themselves, it’s Oppenheimer’s style of explaining his equations which captivates the attention of the viewer seeking to know the complexity of the scientific discipline. Female characters in the movie mainly seek to provide moral support to Oppenheimer, Emily Blunt’s character not that impressive and certainly not much of a meaty role as would be expected in a film addressing such a mature pressing theme. What particularly will strike out to movie geeks is how on one hand the movie justifies American foreign policy and how on the other hand Oppenheimer helps America win the war but has his fair share of regrets. This epic drama biographical film of Nolan leaves a strong morally ambiguous message to the viewers. It’s what makes Oppenheimer stand out from the rest of biographical drama period films. A neo noir genre worth watching where the visual style and theme add a modern sensibility to the subject matter. Kudos to Christopher Nolan for the plot of the movie where the conclusion is left for the viewers to decipher.

 

 

 

 

 

  

 

 


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