My Rating: 3.96/4 (aka Must see)

One line summary: The grand biopic of the enigmatic Julius Robert Oppenheimer.

The Deets: I finally saw the latest and much-hyped film from Christopher Nolan – it did not disappoint; if you haven’t seen it, you must. This is a big, expensive, and commercial movie, but its subject matter is highly complex – both the science and the emotional layers that Oppenheimer grappled with as the “father” of the bomb that killed hundreds of thousands. What I appreciated most was twofold: first, this was a new and ambitious type of work for Nolan – his prior movies are all action thrillers of some kind, and this one is a pure biopic; and second; in telling the story of Oppenheimer (the man and the bomb), he stays true to his style – he uses multiple overlapping narratives, replays key moments from different angles, and he films certain threads in black and white vs color to cue the audience as to where we should be oriented. He also doesn’t spell it all out for us – this story revolves around some of the greatest minds of the last century (Niels Bohr, Heisenberg, Fermi, Einstein), and Nolan thrusts us right into the “action” of their field of physics and catapults us through, letting us figure it out as we digest it all, one of the most significant moments in human history.

Perfect for: Pretty much anyone, but especially if you like Nolan’s style, and even more if you’re intrigued by the history of science and the making of the atomic bomb.

Where to watch: Still in theaters, see it on a big screen, makes a difference.

Food pairing: Gotta go with theater popcorn, don’t drink too much or you’ll miss some of the 3 hours.