HIROSHIMA—The film “Oppenheimer,” a biopic about the man known as “the father of the atomic bomb,” opened in the United States to rave reviews in July but hasn’t been shown in Japan—until now.

On March 12, the movie’s distributor, Bitters End Inc., held a preview screening and panel discussion in Hiroshima—hoping to gauge public reaction before the film’s wide release later this month across the country that Oppenheimer’s creation devastated.

The film, directed by British filmmaker Christopher Nolan, follows the life of J. Robert Oppenheimer (1904-1967), the U.S. physicist who led the Manhattan Project to develop the world’s first atomic bomb at Los Alamos, New Mexico.

The film shows the clandestine project, bombing and Oppenheimer’s eventual downfall from his perspective.

The critically acclaimed movie won seven Academy Awards, including the Oscar for Best Picture, but has been criticized for not showing the horrendous devastation of Hiroshima or Nagasaki.

A similar criticism was voiced during the panel discussion after the preview screening.

Former Hiroshima Mayor Takashi Hiraoka, one of the panelists who spoke at the event, expressed regret that the three-hour epic did not shed more light on the horrors of nuclear weapons.

Hiraoka, 96, noted that the film focused on the turbulent life of Oppenheimer, leaving little room to explore the formidable issue of the nuclear threat.

Still, he questioned the wisdom of not portraying the ruins of the two cities or the enormous human toll of the atomic bombs.

By the end of 1945, an estimated 200,000 people had perished from the nuclear blasts in August that year. Many continue to suffer from the effects of the radiation even today.

“The film was made in a way to validate the conclusion that the atomic bomb was used to save the lives of Americans,” said Hiraoka, who served as Hiroshima mayor from 1991 to 1999 after being a top editor at a local newspaper.

Another panelist, Tatsuya Mori, 67, a highly regarded independent documentary filmmaker, expressed understanding of Nolan’s decision to not include images of the bombed cities.

“The film approaches how tragic and brutal nuclear war is indirectly, without showing any footage, which may be less spectacular for an audience—but when it does reach out to their hearts, the impact is powerful,” said Mori, who is from Kure, Hiroshima Prefecture.

“It’s not just a matter of showing scenes of Hiroshima and Nagasaki or not,” he said.

Of the film’s flawed and anguished main character, Mori said, “Oppenheimer is depicted as being pushed by all sides and in constant emotional conflict, which makes his portrait all the more significant.”

The third panelist, Arthur Binard, a U.S. poet and longtime resident of Hiroshima, praised the film for expertly capturing the emotional conflict of the atomic bomb’s creator, a work almost unprecedented in Hollywood.

Binard, 57, said the movie allows the audience to witness how the cruel project was developed through the collaboration of scientists and the military.

The movie, he said, will stimulate viewers’ thoughts and inspire them to take a fresh look at what they have been told.

However, he noted that the work does not depict why Hiroshima and Nagasaki were selected as targets.

About 110 high school and college students from Hiroshima Prefecture were also invited for the preview screening.

Yuta Sakata, a third-year student at Sotoku High School, said that despite the conspicuous absence of images of the bombed-out cities, "Oppenheimer" still engaged audiences.

“Since there were no direct depictions, the movie made us use our imaginations,” he said. “I hope that viewers will do their own research to find out what unfolded in Hiroshima and Nagasaki.”

Noa Yamanishi, a second-year student at the same high school, said she covered her ears during the scene of the world’s first atomic bomb test.

“That scene alone was terrifying enough for me,” she said. “Today, we are living in a world with a countless number of nuclear weapons. It drove home the point that we should act immediately to prevent nuclear war.”

In a message to students, Mori underlined the importance of presenting events from diverse perspectives.

“In World War II, Japan was the aggressor toward other Asian countries,” he said. “Trying to see things from multiple viewpoints is crucial.”

Mori also wanted the younger generation to know that, despite being the world’s only nation to have suffered an atomic bomb attack, Japan has not yet signed the U.N. Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons.

Binard said that young people should be confident about their stance against nuclear weapons. They should be adamant about refusing nuclear arsenals even if there are many in the world who say they need them, he said.

Hiraoka raised an alarm about the possible revival of political repression, touching on Oppenheimer’s fall from wartime hero to suspected spy during the Red Scare of the 1950s in the United States. 

“This atmosphere of oppression should never be allowed to rise again,” he said. “I would like students to learn from this movie, and keep in mind that a time could come when we cannot voice our desire for peace without risks.”

“Oppenheimer” will be released nationwide on March 29.

(This article was written by Rikuri Kuroda and Yuhei Kyono.)