In this review for The Free Press, Elliot Ackerman examines Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer, a film about J. Robert Oppenheimer, the Manhattan Project, and the creation of the atomic bomb.
Ackerman praises Nolan’s structure, visuals, and performances, especially Cillian Murphy’s portrayal of Oppenheimer, while exploring the deeper questions the film raises about creation, destruction, and moral responsibility.
Creation, Destruction, and Oppenheimer
The essay analyzes how Nolan braids the story of Oppenheimer’s scientific rise with the political fallout that followed. For Ackerman, the film’s power comes from its tension between discovery and devastation.
Nuclear Weapons and the Modern World
Ackerman connects the film to today’s nuclear risks, including great-power competition, Russia, China, Iran, North Korea, and the erosion of the old postwar security order.
Why the Film Matters Now
The review also considers artificial intelligence as a technology that may echo the moral and strategic disruption once caused by nuclear weapons.