Oppenheimer 2023

While watching "Oppenheimer," I wondered several times whether the entire subject may not be better suited for an HBO prestige miniseries. With a three-hour runtime, the film is definitely too long for my taste, and especially in the first two hours, some scenes certainly could have been cut. However, some strong visual moments and an incredibly compelling final act made the movie-going experience an exciting one for me in the end.

There is little to criticize besides the somewhat bloated plot. For example, the female roles are written far too thinly, as is typical for director and screenwriter Christopher Nolan, and they are hardly existent at all. Just take a look at the Wiki entry for the film; there are currently 50 actors listed, with only five of them being female. In my view, the fact that it is historical material can only partially account for this. And if you have only a few actresses, then at least the characters of Florence Pugh and Emily Blunt should get something more to do.

The performances themselves, however, are almost all very strong. Cillian Murphy is, unsurprisingly, a convincing leading man. Matt Damon and Robert Downey Jr. also put in strong performances. Only in one scene with President Harry S. Truman, who is played by a notable actor I won't spoil, did I have massive problems acting-wise. Looking at the script, meanwhile, I would say that Nolan doesn't exactly get too deep. You shouldn't expect an analytical character study of Robert Oppenheimer. Furthermore, it is rather obvious who Nolan believes to be "the good guys" and "the bad guys." But I don't want to criticize that too much, as it makes the movie more accessible to a larger audience.

Ultimately, I can't give this movie anything other than a strong recommendation, if only because of the thrilling last hour. Those who have no problems with Nolan's style will certainly enjoy "Oppenheimer". However, I would also very much like to see a miniseries about the "father of the atomic bomb".