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Oppenheimer (2023)
A captivating and complex film about one of the history's most influential figures
This was my most anticipated film of the year, as a fan of Nolan's previous films. After what, in my opinion, was a bit of a miss with Tenet, I was eager to see how Nolan's next film would turn out, and if it would be a return to form or a convoluted and overstuffed picture. I am very pleased to say I found Oppenheimer to be very much a return to form for Nolan, up there with his best work such as Inception, Interstellar, the Dark Knight, Memento and the Prestige. Everyone plays their parts very well, and along with a crisp, entertaining and intriguing screenplay and score, the film surges to great heights.
Compared to the mind-bending enthralling dreamscapes of Inception, or the majestic and expansive reaches of space in Interstellar, Oppenheimer is focused on the much less fantastical, but no less significant, real life figures in a race to harness the power of the atom to win the Second World War. At the center of this struggle is J Robert Oppenheimer, a complex and brilliant individual whose nuance and inner turmoil is captured perfectly in a tour de force performance by Cillain Murphy, a frequent Christopher Nolan collaborator. Murphy does a brilliant job portraying Oppenheimer from his early graduate school days at Cambridge through to Gottingen and then his establishment of the quantum physics program at Berkeley, his collaborations with Ernest Lawrence, friendship with Isidor Rabi, on again off again fling with the erratic Jean Tatlock and his meeting with his future wife Kitty. The film starts in the middle of things with Oppenheimer's early studies through to his recruitment into the Manhattan project, and then his eventual success with the development of an atomic weapon that forever changed the history of the war and the world. The interspersed glimpses of the quantum realm and atoms was a nice visual accompaniment in my view. Nolan deftly cuts between the colored subjective view of Oppenheimer and the black and white perspective of his opponent, the calculating and crafty Lewis Strauss (played superbly with menace by Robert Downey).
The film captures its source material well, using the biography "American Prometheus" by Kai Bird and Martin Sherwin as its basis. We see Oppenheimer reach the pinnacle of his scientific career, being on the cover of time magazine, meeting President Truman and achieving a remarkable success in developing the nuclear gadget that ended the war. He wins rightfully deserved accolades, but is haunted by the carnage, suffering and loss his creation brings about. He begins to speak out against the proliferation of nuclear weapons to avert a greater tragedy, but sadly it is too late. As they say, pride comes before the fall, and as Prometheus was punished for giving fire to humanity, so to was the American Prometheus brought low after his great triumph. We see the insidious plan of Strauss put into motion, driven by his belief that Oppenheimer poisoned other scientists against him. Part of the hearing against Oppenheimer's criticism was indeed his opposition to further nuclear proliferation and the development of even more destructive weapons. Strauss's plot leads to the discrediting and erasure of Oppenheimers credibility until he loses his security clearance and is essentially forced out of government work, his reputation in ruins.
All in all, the film is an engaging and carefully crafted look into one of the most significant men in history, whose work forever changed not just the face of war, but the world itself. While he achieved tremendous personal and professional success and reached the pinnacle of his career, he was tormented by the destruction he had unleashed with his work and began to show remorse for what he had wrought. The film does a great job in laying out Oppenheimer's character, both virtues and flaws and leaving it to the viewer to judge who he was as a person.
The only complaints I have with the film are that it drags a bit at the end. This is the longest of Nolan's films at a shade over three hours, and while the pacing is for the most part great, the beginning and end of the film do seem a bit quick and dragged out, respectively. The inclusion of a few sex scenes that seemed out of place and bizarre was my other gripe. These were perhaps meant to indicate Oppenheimer's vulnerability and mistakes, but I felt they were unnecessary and gratuitous. In short, I think the film was, for the most part, an excellent and compelling portrayal of one of history's most fascinating individuals.
The Spectacular Spider-Man (2008)
Excellent animated show that captured the essence of heroism
While I didn't get the chance to watch this show until years after it came out, I am so glad I did. In my humble opinion, this is the best adaptation of the spider-man character in any medium. As a big fan of the character and the sam raimi spider-man 1 and 2 films, I think this adaptation even surpasses those efforts and basically all that came before.
This show captured the essence of Peter Parker and Spider-Man brilliantly, showing the struggles he navigates everyday to fulfill his promises to his Aunt May, succeed in the classroom and hang out with his friends (as well as gain new ones), and of course, protect the citizens of New York as the friendly neighborhood Spider-Man. It handled mature themes such as loss, isolation/loneliness and feelings of inadequacy brilliantly, has superb writing for not only Spider-Man but basically all characters, weaves together interesting stories and introduces us to classic comic book storylines while also framing things within the lens of a high schooler trying his best in all facets of life, allows minor characters to shine, and captures the duality of Peter Parker and Spider-Man very well. It also has a catchy and entertaining opening theme song, and fast fluid animation that captures fight scenes well. Overall, I would say it is the best animated Spider-Man adaption I have seen, and it is a real shame it only got 2 seasons, I don't think it deserved to be cancelled at all. An underrated gem.
Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic II - The Sith Lords (2004)
Superb
KOTOR 2 expands upon the first game brilliantly, and truly brings the galaxy to life, whether on the seedy underworld of Nar Shaddaa to the wild overgrown primal jungles of Dxun. It adds depth, nuance and darkness to the galaxy far far away, and has in my opinion, arguably the greatest writing and story in the entire franchise. Obsidian knocked it out of the park with this sequel. The fact that it was rushed in development by lucas arts is a real shame, because the final product with the restored content mod is just brilliant. Kreia is one of, if not the best written character in the entire franchise, and raises so many interesting questions about free will, the influence of the force and the choices we make. The exile has a fascinating story, and the game really allows you to explore the nature of the force and what it means to be a jedi. I also prefer how it adds subtlety and shades of gray to what had largely been to this point, a black and white galaxy in terms of choices and morality. It's such a shame obsidian never got to release and finish their KOTOR 3, this game is a fantastic sequel that deserved a solid conclusion.
The Dark Knight (2008)
Just superb in all aspects
Just rewatched this film for the first time in many years, and it's still as brilliant as it was in 2008. The grittiness of Gotham is intact, and Ledger's performance as the joker is one of the all-time great performances in cinema history, he truly embodies such a menacing and chaotic character. Acting throughout is superb from the entire cast, as is the story, score and writing. I think the Nolan brothers write some truly great scripts, and this film is no exception.
As good as it gets for superhero films, and film in general, in my humble opinion. Feels far more like a crime thriller than a superhero film. Despite Batman's progress in cleaning up corruption and crime in Gotham in begins, the Joker seeks to undo all the good he has done, but only proves Batman's words, that many of the people of Gotham are willing to believe in good. Some symbols are truly incorruptible, as the Joker soon learns.