J. Robert Oppenheimer was an American physicist who went down in history as the creator of the atomic bomb, which changed the course of humanity. And it is his story that is told in Oppenheimer, Christopher Nolan's (Tenet) feature-length film that dives into the memories, fears, facets, and various lives of the American. Repeatedly compared to Prometheus, the titan who stole fire from the gods and gave it to humanity, Oppenheimer is dissected over three hours, either through his relationships, friends, ideas, work, and other aspects. He is a complex figure, but one brilliantly interpreted by Cillian Murphy (Peaky Blinders), a perfect actor for a far from simple role. And despite some of Nolan's directorial vices, which insist on unnecessarily playing with the temporality of the plot or inserting abstract elements capriciously, Oppenheimer shows itself as the filmmaker's most mature film, taking on the challenges and knowing how to create a dense film without boring. A difficult production, skirting the impossible, which does not give in to the schemes of commercial cinema and makes us realize that Oppenheimer is among us, like an invisible threat that he never wanted to be. Read more in our full review.
20 Days in Mariupol is a shocking film – to say the least. After all, the Oscar-winner documentary is the result of risky work by Mstyslav Chernov, a Ukrainian journalist who decided to stay in the city that gives the film its name even when the Russians were already rolling in tanks through the streets. From there, in an account filled with blood and tears, we follow the raw recording of what happened in those 20 days of siege in Mariupol, with Chernov's very personal narration adding details of the horrors of this war. It's a strong film that demands commitment from the viewer and makes us question many things – from what drives a war to the ethics of journalism.
For Western audiences, Godzilla might seem like a monster from purely spectacular movies, recently famous for Warner Bros.' MonsterVerse inaugurated by the 2014 film. However, it's essential to remember that this character originated in Japan and, while having a long history of somewhat silly monster movies, has roots in the Asian country's history with nuclear disasters. 'Godzilla Minus One' is a return to these roots, setting the story right after World War II and with a deeply human narrative with the monster as the antagonist. This doesn't mean it lacks visual spectacle; quite the opposite. However, it achieves the difficult balance between entertainment and a profound narrative that will leave you both shocked and moved.
After "Fantastic Mr. Fox," director Wes Anderson (Asteroid City) once again tackles an adaptation of a Roald Dahl work with "The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar," an exclusive Netflix short film in which the filmmaker pushes all the boundaries of his distinctive style. The result is a brilliant piece that plays with various narrative levels: the story is narrated by Dahl himself (Ralph Fiennes), who tells how the egocentric and eccentric millionaire Henry Sugar (Benedict Cumberbatch) discovers a notebook containing notes from a doctor (Dev Patel) about the experiences of a circus mystic (Ben Kingsley), a man who learned to "see without using his eyes." Wes Anderson's entire idiosyncrasy is taken to its extremes in this short film, so it won't change your mind if you're one of his critics. However, fans will delight in a true treat in which the director shows that the artifice of his cinema is no impediment to reaching profound and moving truths with his stories.
The vast majority of fiction films about the Holocaust tackle, in one way or another, the brutal violence suffered by its victims. However, with "The Zone of Interest", director Jonathan Glazer addresses the other side of the coin: the mechanisms of complicity that allowed such atrocities to happen. The plot follows Rudolf Höss (played by Christian Friedel) and his family, comfortably settled in a country house, a private paradise separated from the Auschwitz concentration camp only by a concrete fence. Without ever exposing unnecessarily graphic violence, the film delves more into its origins and consequences, allowing us to see the ways in which history and its dangers repeat themselves to this day.