OPPENHEIMER: FATHER OF THE ATOMIC BOMB

OPPENHEIMER, A CINEMATIC MASTERPIECE 

OPPENHEIMER is one of the biggest cinematic phenomena to ever make its way to the big screen in the era of digital screening. It was released on the 21st of July, 2023 along with the extremely opposite fictional, feminist yet provoking take on Barbie. I, as a cinephile, went to watch both movies on the same day with a difference of 10 minutes between them. Barbie first, and Oppenheimer later. And I must say, after watching Oppenheimer, I could not even remember watching Barbie in the first place. Maybe the girls did, but not me. The whole cinematic approach of Oppenheimer in 3 hours, clouded my mind with only the thoughts of the "FATHER OF ATOMIC BOMB", completely barbecuing Barbie.  

THE FILM

Oppenheimer's story, the film deals with a lot of major historical events ranging from World War 2, the Manhattan Project, and the rivalry between Lewis Strauss and Oppenheimer to the foreseeable future scenario that would eventually devour Earth due to Oppenheimer's creation. The film is NOT about the bomb at all. It's about the title of the film, OPPENHEIMER himself. As the film progresses, we come to know of the twisted relationship between Oppenheimer and Albert Einstein, and how the chain reaction of the bomb can be shown throughout the movie, from the beginning to the very end. The end will haunt you. Oppenheimer wasn't a bad guy, nor was he a good one, he was morally corrupt, just like us, but on a mass level that could destroy the world.  

 

 

 

 

 

 THE MUSIC

Ah, the music, the haunting music, the calming music. You see, I watched the movie 4 times on the big screen, and the visuals were stunning as usual for a Nolan epic but the ultimate reason I visited the cinema 4 times was for Ludwig Göransson's composition. "Can You Hear The Music?" asked Bohr to Oppenheimer. That piece got inside me and ridiculed me to the point I felt Oppenheimer's anxiety even before the film took full throttle. A soundtrack is a powerhouse for any movie in modern times, i.e. I also watched Spider-Verse 2, 4 times for the animation but mostly for the soundtrack. That Dolby feel has to be cinema-worthy. The last piece that plays in Oppenheimer, "Destroyer of Worlds" is by name, The Destroyer of Humanity. You feel the regret in his eyes. Its spell-bounding.

WHAT I REGRETTED FROM THE MOVIE

I live in a country where Indian movies are banned and there are very few IMAX cinemas here and very high petrol prices, this shithole of a country ruled by generals, Pakistan. I couldn't watch the movie on IMAX because I live in Rawalpindi and the closest IMAX cinema here is in Lahore where I went to watch Avatar: The Way of Water. It was a great experience but damn, it was expensive. Sadly, I missed the Oppenheimer IMAX screening because the country is going through a massive price hike.

CONCLUSION

Finally, what do we learn from Oppenheimer? Is there any lesson or only regret? If there is a lesson, can we do something about it? The answer lies in the downfall of Oppenheimer. He failed humanity, and due to his actions, humanity is falling itself. Cut to 2023, Russian-Ukraine-North Korea are closer than ever to detonating the biggest bomb, as predicted by the genius, Oppy. 

The regret was there. And Oppenheimer couldn't do anything about it. The only time he was content with his life was when he was diagnosed with cancer. So, you see, this world was meant to be destroyed and there's nothing we can do about it. 

"AND I AM BECOME DEATH, THE DESTROYER OF WORLDS" -Oppenheimer 

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