After seeing “Oppenheimer” twice, I can confidently say that this film is one for the ages. It has taken the world by storm, grossing over 851 million dollars since its release in July. Directed by the legendary Christopher Nolan, “Oppenheimer” recently surpassed “Inception” to become the director’s third highest-grossing film. Social media heavily publicized the film hand in hand with Greta Gerwig’s “Barbie,” which was released in theaters on the same day. TikTok users popularized the term “Barbenheimer,” which describes watching both films on the day of their releases. While I do think there are a couple of things that could have been done differently, “Oppenheimer” featured some top-tier work in all categories of filmmaking.

Sitting in the theater on opening day, my expectations were high. I would not say I am a Nolanite by any means, however, I have always been a fan of his film style. I was fortunate enough to see the movie in IMAX 70mm, which is Nolan’s intended format for the movie to be viewed in. I can only liken the experience to watching a movie in 3D, without actually watching it in 3D. Because of this 3D-like effect, the opening sequence of “Oppenheimer” really sets the stage for the rest of the movie, using bold visuals and big sounds as is typical of Nolan. Featuring an all-star cast led by Cillian Murphy as Robert Oppenheimer, not much could happen to sway my final opinion of the film.

“Oppenheimer” is a work of historical fiction, covering aspects of Oppenheimer’s entire life throughout the three-hour duration. The film begins by covering his earlier days studying abroad across Europe. It then looks at the time he spends teaching at Berkeley, during which he attends numerous Communist Party meetings (important at the end of the film). To end his time at Berkeley, General Leslie Groves (played by Matt Damon) recruits Oppenheimer to head up the Manhattan Project. Although he faces a bit of a moral dilemma, Oppenheimer agrees to assemble a team of some of the best scientists in the world. Throughout the three years that the team works at Los Alamos on developing the atomic bomb, Oppenheimer experiences growing resentment about the work that he is doing due to the effects that he knows are unavoidable.

The Trinity Test takes place about two hours into the movie and is one of the best scenes I have ever seen. The build-up is immaculate, with high tensions as a result of a lingering storm in addition to the possibility of disaster. The moment the test ultimately takes place is so serene. The audience sits in almost absolute silence as the screen goes completely white, then slowly brings the mushroom cloud into focus. This silence continues for almost a minute before the blast’s shock wave reaches the spectators, and absolutely jarring audio is reintroduced to the scene. In my opinion, this is one of the most moving parts of the film as Oppenheimer wrestles with the fact that he has successfully created an atomic superweapon.

The last hour of the movie focuses on wrapping up the sub-plot which is inserted various times throughout the main storyline. This sub-plot involves a “mock-trial” that was held to both revoke Oppenheimer’s security clearances, as well as destroy his reputation post-Manhattan Project due to his alleged involvement with the Communist party during his earlier years. This is another segment that I think is extremely well done, once again having high tensions and creating a major sense of discomfort for the audience. With Lewis Strauss (played by Robert Downey Jr.) commanding much of this portion of the film, you really cannot go wrong.

As I mentioned near the beginning, I do think that there are a couple of things that could have been improved upon. The first of these is montages. Throughout the film, Nolan uses two or three montages to depict the passage of time, and I personally did not enjoy these. In my opinion, they were overused, they interrupted the flow and did not provide any necessary information for viewers. The only other complaint I have is that the Trinity test, two hours into the movie, almost feels like it should be the end of the film. It is a scene with such grandeur that when the story continues for another hour, I feel as though the gravity of it all is almost dampened. Despite these minor issues I have, “Oppenheimer” will definitely still occupy one of the spots on my “Top Ten Films” list.