Readers Write In #630: Thoughts on ‘Oppenheimer’

By Siva Soorya

I watched Oppenheimer when it came out but only now had the time to write some thoughts about it. It is unfortunate that despite the three hour runtime, the movie never really delved into the psyche behind Oppenheimer (something which Lincoln does marvellously well) and we never really feel the weight or emotional guilt behind building the bomb.

While watching the movie, I was actually reminded of another movie portraying a genius on the other side of the Atlantic Ocean who played his part in helping his country win WW2: Alan Turing’s biopic The Imitation Game. Granted, that movie has all the typical Weinstein-isms: schmaltzy score, fussy acting performances and direction that follows the screenplay to a T; all geared towards packing as many Oscar nominations (and wins) as possible. But, that movies works better than Oppenheimer, imo, because it easily appeals to the emotional side. Just a couple of scenes in Imitation Game, where Turing prevents one of the royal fleet battalions from being notified about incoming German u-boats (even though his team member’s brother is serving on one of the doomed ships) and consequently, his application of stats and probability on when to use the decoded messages from Enigma saved thousands of lives as well (not commenting on the historical accuracy of either of the movies; just interpreting events based on what was shown in both movies) gives more insight into the mathematician’s persona: while he does feel emotional, ultimately he is ruthless and efficient, just like a machine, to carry out the problem he was given. We never really see Oppenheimer grapple with his invention; this is where the constant cutting back-and-forth takes us out of the movie. Maybe, a linear style of presentation could have helped us seeing his guilt?  

The issue with Oppenheimer is that it should have just taken one plot point and built its screenplay from there: either the Manhattan Project or the Senate hearings. But, the movie keeps jumping from one time period to another. In The Imitation Game for example, though the movie starts with the police detectives finding about Turing’s sexuality; the main focus is of the movie shifts to him trying to break Enigma: him meeting his team, their initial conflicts, recruiting Keira Knightley;s character, issues with upper management, solving the issue and aftermath. So, the main story plot is all these but the screenplay is interspersed with little nuggets of flashbacks which informs the viewer about what kind of life did Turing lead: his schooling days (which revealed his knack of solving problems and him realizing his sexuality) and his interview (which shows his genius and aloofness). At least, I felt the use of time and flashbacks gave me a better understanding of Turing than what Nolan attempted to achieve in Oppenheimer.