No./8 Why Nolan is going nuclear
Christopher Nolan’s next movie is about the father of the atomic bomb. Here’s why it’s a perfect fit for his sensibilities
THE CHARACTER
Nolan has shown a fascination for characters whose morality endures the ultimate test, à la the Devil-tempted Faust of German legend (the subject of the opera seen in Batman Begins, no less); Bruce Wayne and Harvey Dent in The Dark Knight, for example, or deviant magician Robert Angier in The Prestige. Modern figures don’t come more Faustian than J. Robert Oppenheimer, the theoretical physicist who created the most destructive force witnessed by humanity and deeply regretted it, becoming ostracised for his anti-bomb beliefs. “It’s just this most monstrous responsibility,” as Nolan said in Tom Shone’s book about the director, The Nolan Variations.
THE HISTORY
World War II drew Nolan back to Earth after the epic odyssey of Interstellar, so it is no great surprise that he returns to the era following the spy-fi extravagance of Tenet. Like Dunkirk, the Oppenheimer story is about a major turning point in the war (in this case, all human history, too) — and, interestingly, as with Dunkirk, that turning point required the involvement of determined non-combatants, albeit scientists rather than boatmen.
THE PHYSICS
Filmmaking is Nolan’s way of tinkering with the clockwork of the universe, so he’s long been obsessed with the way it ticks. For both Interstellar and Tenet he consulted theoretical physicist Kip Thorne, who himself was influenced by Oppenheimer. The “father of the atomic bomb” achieved so much more — in theoretical astronomy, in spectroscopy and in quantum field theory. Some of his findings fed into Tenet, and he is of course directly referenced in that film: the unknown future scientist who killed herself after creating the potentially world-destroying Algorithm is described as “the Oppenheimer of her generation”.
THE CHALLENGE
When have you ever known Nolan to make an ‘easy’ movie? It’s hard to imagine him making this as a straightforward men-in-rooms biopic, though. With Nolan reportedly budgeting the film at more than $100 million, we can still expect practical Fx-driven scope and Imax-shot spectacle on an epic scale.