A masterpiece of cinema, Christopher Nolan delivered with genuine sincerity and vigour.
If Cillian Murphy is denied an Oscar for his haunting portrayal of J. Robert Oppenheimer, it shall be one of the great injustices in cinema history. The supporting cast was brilliant, especially Emily Blunt. I lost count of the ensemble cast of brilliant actors lining up for a few moments of silver screen time in this 3-hour journey that seemed to flash by.
Imax certainly does justice to the vision of Nolan, from overwhelming visuals of the sub-atomic world and the expanded universe to the floor-shaking sound effects. The fast-cut scenes have an emotional impact when layered on unforgiving sounds.
Oppie is a flawed and haunted man, a notion made quite evident from the beginning frames of the movie. He brings the wide-eyed wonder of a child as he journeys around the world in the quest for knowledge, meeting giants of physics upon whose shoulders our modern life rests. In a sense, he goes through a complete anti-hero's journey from naivete, to triumphal power and finally down to defeat, disillusionment and despair. All throughout, we see his constant rationalization and justification of his inevitable march towards becoming the destroyer of worlds. One is torn between sympathy and hatred for this deeply complex genius.
There are so many cautionary tales in this movie, about moments in history when one could swerve in a noble direction instead of taking humanity to the brink of self-destruction. There are other lessons about the politics and machinations of power and the urgency of avoiding enemies through humiliation. The warnings of Einstein delivered throughout the movie hammer home repeatedly.
They say the age of discoveries is past us, and that there is nothing new to unlock anymore. Oppie and his companions were the last great explorers of the universe. What they unlocked remains the final frontier of science, everything that follows rests on their shoulders.
If Cillian Murphy is denied an Oscar for his haunting portrayal of J. Robert Oppenheimer, it shall be one of the great injustices in cinema history. The supporting cast was brilliant, especially Emily Blunt. I lost count of the ensemble cast of brilliant actors lining up for a few moments of silver screen time in this 3-hour journey that seemed to flash by.
Imax certainly does justice to the vision of Nolan, from overwhelming visuals of the sub-atomic world and the expanded universe to the floor-shaking sound effects. The fast-cut scenes have an emotional impact when layered on unforgiving sounds.
Oppie is a flawed and haunted man, a notion made quite evident from the beginning frames of the movie. He brings the wide-eyed wonder of a child as he journeys around the world in the quest for knowledge, meeting giants of physics upon whose shoulders our modern life rests. In a sense, he goes through a complete anti-hero's journey from naivete, to triumphal power and finally down to defeat, disillusionment and despair. All throughout, we see his constant rationalization and justification of his inevitable march towards becoming the destroyer of worlds. One is torn between sympathy and hatred for this deeply complex genius.
There are so many cautionary tales in this movie, about moments in history when one could swerve in a noble direction instead of taking humanity to the brink of self-destruction. There are other lessons about the politics and machinations of power and the urgency of avoiding enemies through humiliation. The warnings of Einstein delivered throughout the movie hammer home repeatedly.
They say the age of discoveries is past us, and that there is nothing new to unlock anymore. Oppie and his companions were the last great explorers of the universe. What they unlocked remains the final frontier of science, everything that follows rests on their shoulders.