Oppenheimer Plot Summary
The buzz around Oppenheimer this weekend is completely valid. The film about J. Robert Oppenheimer, the theoretical physicist behind the development of the atomic bomb, takes us on three different trajectories in his story, which is part biopic, part warning sign to the human race about the horrors of man.
The film is three hours given to us in three acts, and the way it reaches its climactic ending is done in a way only Christopher Nolan could pull off.
How is Oppenheimer structured?
Oppenheimer doesn’t move like a normal biopic. It has an origin story in the film’s early years with the physicist, then jumps around to the perspective of Lewis Strauss, played by Robert Downey Jr. A man who believed that Oppenheimer was a Russian spy and had the FBI pursue that belief but the core of the movie centers around the building of the atomic bomb.
Throughout these parts of the movie, there are tidbits of information that feel like throw away plot points. But if you are an avid Christopher Nolan fan, you know that is never the case.
What happens on the eve of testing?
One of the biggest moments in the film is when a question is raised: could the atomic bomb potentially have a fireball so big that it could set the atmosphere on fire, eventually ending the world? Without even any dramatic editing added to the film, the thought of that is horrifying.
You can rest assured that the chances of that happening are very close to zero in a scene that takes place between Cillian Murphy and Matt Damon on the eve of the testing of the bomb. Nolan dials back the drama of that thought in this scene with some slight humor. But brings it back up again in the film’s final moments.
How does Einstein feature in the film?
One of the first people Oppenheimer goes to when he learns that the atomic bomb could be a threat to the entire world is Albert Einstein. Einstein was a man who, at this time in history, was sort of the old wise-man to the new generation of physicists.
Despite his studies laying the groundwork for people like Oppenheimer, Einstein’s time of being at the forefront had passed. The two have a discussion on the matter and part ways. But there is another meeting between the two in the film that opens and closes it.
Early in the film, Lewis Strauss observes a meeting between Oppenheimer and Einstein. Strauss is offering Oppenheimer the job as Head of the Institute of Advanced Study at Princeton. Oppenheimer spots Einstein and goes to talk to him by a pond.
From Strauss’ perspective, we see Einstein just kind of walk away without a smile on his face. Strauss believes they were speaking about him, which just added to his disdain for Oppenheimer.
As the film goes on, Strauss is key to ruining Oppenheimer’s reputation. But in the film’s final moments, we get to hear the conversation between the two.
What are the most significant conversations in Oppenheimer?
The chat between the two begins with Einstein giving slight praise to Oppenheimer but then telling him what’s going to happen next.
Einstein’s time has passed in the limelight, and he reminds him that his own time is starting to pass as well. We see moments that take place later in time, with a much older Oppenheimer receiving awards from presidents and shaking hands with his rivals, men who tried to condemn him as a communist.
At one point, we see Edward Teller (Ben Safdie) shake hands with Oppenheimer and then go to handshake his wife Kitty (Emily Blunt), but she refuses. Teller testified against Oppenheimer years earlier at his security hearing.
Einstein tells him, “Now it’s your turn to deal with the consequences of your achievement. They’ll pat you on the back and tell you all is forgiven. Just remember it won’t be for you. It’s for them”. We’ve seen Nolan do these in the closing moments of his films in the past.
A scene like this feels reminiscent of Gary Oldman’s speech at the end of The Dark Knight or the final moments of Inception. So you know a kicker is coming. And it is Nolan’s most nihilistic one yet.
How does Oppenheimer end?
As Einstein walks away, Oppenheimer reminds him of the conversation they had about the atomic bomb and its potential to blow up the world. “When I came to you with those calculations, we thought we might start a chain reaction that might destroy the entire world.” “What of it?” Einstein replies. The camera holds on Oppenheimer’s face for a beat, and then he says the dagger of a line, “I believe we did”.
From there, we cut to shots of modern nuclear warheads launching into the sky. The atmosphere catches fire and consumes the earth.
Christopher Nolan delivers maybe one of his most opinionated endings on the world and the horrors mankind can achieve. The film’s final shots also echo its first shots of raindrops hitting a puddle. Rain drops hit the pond that the two are standing by, and we land on a closeup of Oppenhiemers face. Cut to black.
Destroyer of Worlds
Earlier in the film, Oppenheimer quotes the Bhagavad Gita when reading Sanskirt. He reads the line: “Now I Become Death, Destroyer of Worlds”. It’s a phrase felt throughout the rest of the film, and it’s not just about the atomic bomb; it becomes who he is.
And everything Oppenheimer becomes in this film is always traced backwards to the early parts of it. The raindrops on the water and the visions of subatomic worlds and quantum realities feel very avant-garde, but they all begin to take shape into his reality.
It makes us make sense of the world inside of us and the idiosyncrasy’s and strange visions we all may have that could line up with our fate. Its a scary thought that the danger inside of us, could get out and shape our lives going forward.
Read More: Oppenheimer Movie Review