[Photo Credit to Pixabay]

On July 21, the release of Christopher Nolan’s cinematic creation, “Oppenheimer” which served as an ode to J. Robert Oppenheimer, has engendered a controversial discourse in Japan among the Japanese and American critics.

This controversy was sparked due to a concern on its lack of a comprehensive and nuanced depiction of the Japanese perspective, notably elucidating the devastating repercussions of the atomic bombings in Nagasaki and Hiroshima, Japan.

On August 6 and 9, 1945, the United States detonated two atomic bombs over Nagasaki and Hiroshima, killing between 129,000 and 226,000 civilians in order to secure victory against Japan in World War II.

In an effort to recall back to the Nagasaki and Hiroshima incident, the famed filmmaker Christopher Nolan, renowned for his creation of paradoxical yet big hit movies, produced the movie called “Oppenheimer”.

This cinematic endeavor is a tribute to J. Robert Oppenheimer, an American theoretical physicist and director of the Manhattan Project’s Los Alamos Laboratory during World War II.

The movie encapsulates how the atomic and nuclear weapons were created to destroy prominent areas of Germany and Japan under Oppenheimer’s leadership.

However, throughout the film, Oppenheimer constantly battles with his internal conflict of morality and justice in regards to creating the nuclear weapon.

Moreover, the movie envelopes how despite the fact that Oppenheimer had many achievements in theoretical physics- including his huge contributions to the theory of neutron stars and black holes, quantum field theory, and the interactions of cosmic rays- he is mostly remembered as the ‘Father of the Atomic Bomb’.

Regarding its worldwide release, Japanese and American critics have claimed that the movie lacks a clear portrayal of the Japanese perspectives.

Especially since the Japanese were the victims of this mournful incident, the critics argue that the cinema dismisses the reality of the tragic casualties that resulted from the bombing.

One of the critics, Nina Wallace, a media and outreach manager at an organization that documents Japanese American experiences during World War II, stated "It's not just history … There are a lot of victims of the bombings and the [bomb] testing that are still alive and dealing with the consequences.”

Another critic, Paul Ham, an American author of “Hiroshima Nagasaki,” states that “Nolan (the producer) makes very clear that this is about the world through Oppenheimer’s eyes”, thus misleads the audience to obtain a ‘subjective view’ of the events, excluding the victims (Japanese’s) viewpoints.

Additionally, some Japanese citizens have claimed to feel highly uncomfortable while watching the development of such a deadly weapon that killed hundreds of thousands of innocent Japanese citizens in 1945.

Others claim that the victims are still trying to heal from the bombing, thus the painful moments in history shouldn’t be ‘glorified’ as it may encourage insensitivity towards wrongdoings, dismiss respect for victims, and hinder the healing of the trauma.

Victims include the father of Stephen Miwa, Larry, whom he quotes that his dad “was walking in the city alone after the explosion, he thought it was the end of the world.”

However, while critics claim that it is unnecessary to recall Japan’s humiliation and tragedy, others say that it is essential for all nations to acknowledge the reality of humankind's history.

Writer Akihiko Reizie said, “Japan, as a country that suffered atomic bombings, has the right to evaluate this work on the subject of the development of the atomic bomb.”

Meanwhile, Japanese users on social network X(formerly known as Twitter) firmly stated that the film should be released in Japan as it “narrates historical events with due consideration and care.”

Director Nolan also stated in NowThis Originals that the Manhattan Project shown in the movie could be “indicators of responsibilities that people can bear for potential consequences that technology could bring”.

While it is uncertain about the release of the movie in Japan, ‘Oppenheimer’ gained worldwide success by crossing more than the $850 million mark, exceeding the box office of Barbie.

The movie is known to engage the viewers in this cinematic experience of the story of the genius physicist and encourages them to think critically about the past and its connection to people’s decisions in the present surrounded by artificial intelligence.