What does that black glove mean in that key Oppenheimer scene?
A furtive element but which perfectly illustrates the disorder of the protagonist.
Beware of spoilers : the following article details one of the scenes at the heart ofOppenheimer. If you haven’t seen the Christopher Nolan movie, better not read the sequel.
Oppenheimer: an intimate odyssey as staggering as it is trying (review)
Did you notice the black glove which appears furtively at the time of the suicide of Jean Tatlock (Florence Pugh)? The scene is so agitated that several spectators missed it. But those who have seen it have all been marked by the power of this hand which rests on her when she is immersed in her bathtub.
In reality, the mistress of Robert J. Oppenheimer died on January 5, 1944 in similar circumstances. Suffering from severe depression, she is found dead in her apartment, alone. She was only 29 years old.
She had taken barbiturates, but not a lethal dose, her medical examiner will reveal. And the fact that she left an unsigned note and was such a controversial personality immediately sparked rumors. Was his murder disguised as suicide? The young woman, a communist activist, was being watched by the FBI, and this gloved hand in the film can be understood as a direct reference to this theory.
The relationship between Jean Tatlock and Robert J. Oppenheimer, played by Cillian Murphy on screen, was indeed investigated, and weighed against him in his 1954 security hearing. But beyond those official charges, the scientist personally felt guilty about the disappearance of this woman. And that’s another meaning that we can give to this gloved hand. This part of the film being told from his point of view, it may be his own hand, holding his beloved in the water until he drowned her, because he knew she was not going to not well and blames himself for letting her die? It would be a visual way to show the public that they feel responsible for this drama.
Digitally Censored Oppenheimer Nude Scenes With Black Dress
The fact of never mentioning this glove again during the film leaves doubt in the minds of the spectators and contributes to makingOppenheimer such a powerful experience. The film is currently on view in cinemas. Here is its trailer:
