Given that Christopher Nolan wrote and directed 11 of his 12 feature films, he definitely is the epitome of the ideal writer-director. Oppenheimer, a biographical thriller about J. Robert Oppenheimer, the theoretical physicist who contributed to the development of the nuclear bomb, was written and directed by Nolan. His recently released film stars Cillian Murphy in the lead.
For the unversed, the 52-year-old British-American director made the creative decision to write the Oppenheimer script in the first person.
Following the success of his earlier films like Dunkirk and Tenet, Nolan’s fans were especially eager to see how the director will next dazzle audiences. The screenplay, according to Murphy, who played Oppenheimer’s leading man, is one of the best thus far and promises to be a new high for Nolan.
Murphy briefly discussed Nolan’s process for writing the Oppenheimer script in his earlier interview.
The actor was drawn to one feature in particular: it was written entirely in the first person, which is unusual for scripts, given that usually films are written from a third-person perspective.
Cillian Murphy Praised Christopher Nolan’s Script
Oppenheimer, Christopher Nolan’s recently released film, had such a profound impact on him as a filmmaker that he was compelled to write the script from the viewpoint of the lead character. The majority of the movie is told from Robert J. Oppenheimer’s perspective, played by Cillian Murphy as the titular figure.
The lead actor in Oppenheimer also revealed a significant aspect of the script that he had never seen before. Prior to the SAG-AFTRA strike, the 47-year-old Peaky Blinders actor uncovered that the screenplay was written in first person, which totally amazed him. Murphy told Collider:
“[Nolan wrote the script in first-person, which I’d never encountered and it was an experiment. It blew my mind.”
He continued by saying that doing so made the writing even more impactful. To quote him:
“It was one of the best screenplays I’ve ever read, without a shadow of a doubt. For example, he wouldn’t say, ‘Oppenheimer walks into the room and speaks to Strauss.’ He would say, ‘I walk into the room,’ and ‘I walk over and speak to Strauss.’ That’s how it was written.”
Christopher Nolan’s Aim Before Writing Oppenheimer’s Script
The New York Times previously quoted Christopher Nolan as saying that he believed J. Robert Oppenheimer’s story to be the most important one to be told. The story revolved around the physicist who developed the first atomic bomb in 1945 while the world was still at war.
So, in that context, his script also made sense.
Meanwhile, the lead actor, Cillian Murphy mentioned the potential impact Nolan may have on future screenplays as he told Weintraub:
“I’m sure every script will be like this now. [Laughs] They’ll all be copying Chris.”
Additionally, Oppenheimer is Nolan’s best film to date, according to Murphy’s co-star, Benny Safdie, who played Edward Teller.
Moreover, there is a sizable ensemble of A-list actors in the movie. In addition to Emily Blunt, the film also stars Josh Hartnett, Michael Angarano, Matt Damon, Florence Pugh, Benny Safdie, Robert Downey Jr., and Kenneth Branagh.
For the unversed, the renowned director has proposed a number of intriguing projects, including Interstellar, Tenet, and Dunkirk. Also, he has even ventured into the superhero subgenre with The Dark Knight Trilogy, which all-starred Murphy.
Oppenheimer is currently playing in theaters.
Source- Collider
