The Beginning of the End

The story unfolds during World War II, as the United States accelerates its Manhattan Project to beat the Axis powers in the race to a functional atomic bomb. Major milestones include Roosevelt's wartime funding, the 1942 chain reaction, and the 1945 deployment over Hiroshima. The period is marked by rapid scientific breakthroughs, industrial scale production, and intense political and ethical debates about weaponization.

Set across multiple locations: Chicago, where the first controlled nuclear chain reaction occurs at the University of Chicago; Los Alamos, the secret laboratory in New Mexico where the bomb is developed; Hiroshima, Japan, the target of the first atomic bombing; and Tinian, the Pacific island base used for deployment. California frames the film with a time-capsule newsreel suggesting the future opening of the record in 2446.

⚗️ Ethics and Power

The film juxtaposes scientific achievement with moral risk, showing how the discovery of atomic energy promises progress while threatening destruction. It questions whether knowledge should be pursued without considering consequences, especially under wartime pressure.

🧭 War and Technology

A portrait of how global conflict accelerates science, funding, and collaboration across institutions and nations. The Manhattan Project is depicted as a massive, secret assembly of physicists, engineers, and politicians driven by urgent wartime needs.

💔 Human Cost

Personal losses underscore the broader consequences of weaponization. The death of Cochran and the news of casualties highlight the individual pain behind strategic decisions, reminding that war's outcomes reverberate through families and communities.