Given how the Avatar movies are scheduled to be released all the way up till 2031 if they do not experience any further delays, there is still time before James Cameron starts focusing on his next project. However, it is still hard not to look forward to his next film and wonder how it will expand on a story beat Oppenheimer has already set up in more ways than one. While only time will tell how Cameron's World War 2 movie will turn out, it already seems on the right path towards etching its own identity in the movie genre.

James Cameron's Hiroshima Movie Can Show A Perspective Oppenheimer Didn't

It Could Reflect On The Japanese Perspective Of The Hiroshima Atomic Bombings

While it would be unfair to criticize Oppenheimer for not capturing the Japanese perspective towards the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombings, it is a fact that the film barely focuses on how the atomic bombs impacted the Japanese population. In its 3-hour runtime, the Christopher Nolan movie only features a brief segment in which the titular figure gets visions of the aftermath of the bombings on the lives of many innocent civilians. James Cameron's next film, Last Train from Hiroshima, which will be set around the same timeline as Oppenheimer, can finally show what Nolan's film didn't.

Based on Charles Pellegrino's 2015 book of the same name, Last Train from Hiroshima will follow the tale of a Japanese man who survives the Hiroshima atomic bombing and manages to board a train out of the city to Nagasaki in the nick of time. Even when the bombs drop on Nagasaki three days later, he somehow survives while experiencing the horrors of its aftermath. James Cameron's Last Train from Hiroshima is inspired by the true story of a man, Tsutomu Yamaguchi, who survived both Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

As Cameron recalled (via Deadline), he met Yamaguchi in the hospital just days before he ed away. Since the survivor handed "the baton of his personal story" to the director, he feels a profound responsibility to bring Yamaguchi's experiences to the screen. Although Cameron has been "wrestling with how to do it, over the years," he says that he "can’t turn away from it."

Here's his full statement:

"It’s a subject that I’ve wanted to do a film about, that I’ve been wrestling with how to do it, over the years. I met Tsutomu Yamaguchi, a survivor of both Hiroshima and Nagasaki, just days before he died. He was in the hospital. He was handing the baton of his personal story to us, so I have to do it. I can’t turn away from it."

Why Oppenheimer Didn't Show Hiroshima or Nagasaki

The Film Focuses On Walking Through The Titular Figure's Perspective

Throughout its runtime, Christopher Nolan's Oppenheimer revolves around the titular figure's perspective, highlighting how he is torn between his need to revolutionize physics and growing moral concerns over the destructive consequences of his actions. Oppenheimer's opening sequence even features an epic montage, entitled "Can You Hear the Music," in which Oppenheimer is seemingly troubled by his visions of the "quantum world." His pursuit of scientific exploration is almost blinding to the point where he fails to foresee the long-term implications of his discovery.

Oppenheimer primarily unfolds from the point of view of only two characters, Strauss and Oppenheimer, who never had a first-hand witness of the bombings' aftermath. Owing to this, it makes sense that instead of directly featuring Hiroshima or Nagasaki, Oppenheimer portrays how the titular figure is haunted by the visions of what he believes must have happened in the Japanese cities. While it is understandable where the criticism surrounding the film's focus comes from, showing Nagasaki or Hiroshima would not have tonally been in tandem with the film's emphasis on Oppenheimer's life and views.

The film also opens with a quote — "Prometheus stole fire from the gods and gave it to man. For this he was chained to a rock and tortured for eternity." — highlighting how it is about the parallels between Prometheus' tale and Oppenheimer's own journey. The reference sets the tone for the film by underscoring that it is purely about the duality of innovation experienced by Oppenheimer, whose pursuit of knowledge and scientific discovery leads to monumental progress for humanity but also unleashes disastrous moral and ethical consequences for him.

James Cameron's New Movie Is What He's Needed For Years

It Marks His Departure From The Avatar Franchise

James Cameron's last non-Avatar feature film was Titanic, which premiered in 1997. Although he has helmed a few documentaries since then, his directorial career has primarily revolved around the Avatar films. Owing to this, it is great that he plans to direct Last Train from Hiroshima and step back from a movie franchise that has defined almost three decades of his career.

Since Avatar is extremely fantastical, Last Train from Hiroshima's true story elements will allow James Cameron to explore a contrasting genre. Whether Last Train from Hiroshima will be as culturally significant and impactful as Christopher Nolan's Oppenheimer is yet to be seen. However, it is good that, after Oppenheimer's success, another potentially big-budget film will give audiences a more well-rounded view of the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombings.

Oppenheimer

R

Drama

History

Biography

9/10

60

8.9/10

Release Date

July 21, 2023

9/10

60

8.9/10

Oppenheimer is a film by Christopher Nolan, which follows the theoretical physicist J. Robert Oppenheimer, the man behind the atomic bomb. Cillian Murphy will play the titular role, with the story based on the book American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer by Kai Bird and Martin J. Sherwin.

Cast

Florence Pugh

Runtime

150 Minutes

Director

Christopher Nolan

Writers

Christopher Nolan

Studio(s)

Syncopy Inc., Atlas Entertainment

Distributor(s)

Universal Pictures

Budget

$100 Million

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