Olivia Bell Mr.

Borrero English 1102 April 13, 2012 The Project: Movie Proposal on the Manhattan Project

Nuclear war; a topic that is on most peoples mind when they watch the news and see the countries like North Korea or Iran pop up on the scroll of the nights news. The question of what weapon will be used against us, is no longer relevant, the questions of whom it will be, and when will it happen, are much more pressing. But how did we get to this point? Most people can trace the arms race back to the 1940s, the time where peace was the dream of long forgotten treaties. The whispers of terrible things happening in distant lands and the ever present threat of bombings like the one that had rocked the country on that December day in 1941. My hope is that if people see the course in which the decision to detonate the atomic bomb on Hiroshima, and Nagasaki, they might be able to compare it with some peoples fear of countries detonating nuclear war heads on ourselves. My plot is a well-rounded, completed story of the tragedy of the Manhattan project from the people involved to the events that took places to make those people reach the decisions that impacted mankind forever. The main three points in my movie will be the introduction of characters, the exposure to radiation sickness, and the reaction to the bomb. My central conflict is the ever present struggle between powers for the decision to use the bomb, and at what cost. The movie will open up with a scene of families gathered around radios listening to the devastating news of the Pearl Harbor attacks. Flash between scenes of government officials in the capital and papers being passed from person to person in a meeting with the words confidential written across in red letters. Jump ahead and see the construction of fences in the surrounding area of Los Alamos, curious citizens of nearby towns driving to

the area only to be turned away. Government officials going from scientist to scientist and every single young man available to bring to Los Alamos, and even though the officials try hard, they are unable to discourage some from bringing their wives; this includes Anne-Marie and her husband. Show the constant struggle of everyday lives, of the men working long hours, and the few wives that are there becoming agitated of the secrets. The strain on the commanders and head scientist and they begin to piece what their research will be used for. The climax of the movie revolves around Harry Daghlian and his radiation sickness and eventual death. The scientists on the site are in outrage until General Groves and Robert Oppenheimer convince them it is for the best. Anne-Marie is suspicious of the death; however her husband just pushes it aside as an accident. The final scene shows the mushroom cloud that overtook Nagasaki and Hiroshima, the celebratory, scared and awed reaction of the public, and the somber state of the crews in the creation sites over what they had created. Throughout the movie the struggle between powers is evident between the team of Groves and Oppenheimer and the political figurehead that relayed information to the president. The story I hope to tell shall be taking place in the desert of New Mexico in a site called Site Y, or Los Alamos, named after the Los Alamos canyon not far away. Placed in the 1940s you can expect the stereotypical, women as housewives, men as the bread winners, America clean cut and white picket fences. However, surrounding the Site isnt so stereotypical, guard towers, chain linked fences with check points that you can only exit with permission and papers. (Schofield) My three main characters are General Leslie Groves played by Bruce Willis, Robert Oppenheimer Robin Williams, and Anne-Marie Manning played by Jessica Alba. Groves previous life consisted of being a military brat; after his Father retired from the Presbyterian church as a minister, he began working as an Army Chaplain, the year Groves was born. After traveling around the world and country he applied to West Point and was denied. After a second attempt he graduated within the top 10 percent of his class and was approached by the Army of Engineer Corps. One man described his experience working with Groves as;

The biggest son of a bitch I have ever worked for. He is most demanding. He is most critical. He is always a driver, never a praiser. He is abrasive and sarcastic. He disregards all normal organizational channels. He is extremely intelligent. He has the guts to make timely, difficult decisions. He is the most egotistical man I know. He knows he is right and so sticks by his decision. He abounds with energy and expects everyone to work as hard, or even harder, than he does... if I had to do my part of the atomic bomb project over again and had the privilege of picking my boss, I would pick General Groves." ("Atomic Heritage Foundation ").i Oppenheimers history was a bit different; as a child born to a Jewish Immigrant textile producer, and a painter, he showed his intelligence in school. He skipped several grades, while attending Harvard placing out of basic classes and being allowed to take graduate level classes. Anne-Marie was by far the most different, as she was not a participant in the project, but rather a casual observer. She was born to a farm family with six other brothers and sisters, she was sixteen when she met her future husband John and was married two years later. He was a physicist who attended the University of Minnesota and was recruited to help with the placement of uranium in the bomb. She attended college for a year before marrying and settling down as a house wife first in Seneca Falls, NY, and shortly after in Los Alamos. My target audience will be broad, focusing on the ethic conscious, especially those with worries about nuclear war. It will however be an R-rated movie, due to language and the graphic scenery of the detonation of the bombs, therefore, 17 and up. It will also be targeted to those who are interested in history, the same people who saw the Iron Lady would be interested in this movie for the regal and important feel this secretive project had at the time. The Project will differ from its kind because so many period movies about this time were focused in Europe, at the camps, or the fighting. Or in Asia, at the fierce force the Asians threw into their fight. No movie has ever focused on the battle the Americans

were waging here at home to end battles everywhere. A battle, in which science, politics, and secrets were the weaponry and the Germans were still the ultimate enemy. My proposal is unique, it has facts, and interesting points and can be related to the days constant worry over nuclear threats. I hope you found my idea interesting enough to create it into the movie that alert the current society of the dangers of bombing countries for a quick resolution.

Works Cited Page "The Unlikely Pair: General Leslie Groves and J. Robert Oppenheimer The Unlikely Pair: General Leslie Groves and J. Robert Oppenheimer ." Atomic Heritage Foundation. N.p., 27 Sep 2011. Web. 22 Feb 2012. <http://www.atomicheritage.org/mediawiki/index.php/The_Unlikely_Pair:_General_Leslie_Groves_and _J._Robert_Oppenheimer>. Boyer, Paul. "Sixty Year and Counting"Ed. Rosemary Mariner. Knoxville: The University of Tennessee Press, 2006. 3-15. Print. Groves, Leslie, and First . Now It Can Be Told. New York: Da Capo Press, 1975. Print. Hales , Peter. Living of the Manhattan Project. Chicago: University of Illinois Press, 1997. Print. Howes , Ruth. Their Day in the Sun. Philadelphia: Temple University Press, 1999. Print. Parides , Peter. "To Run With The Swift."Ed. Rosemary Mariner. Knoxville: The University of Tennessee Press, 2006. 21-41. Print. Schofield, Mary Anne. "Lost and Almost Caught Between the Fences."Ed. Rosemary Mariner. Knoxville: The University of Tennessee Press, 2006. 65-82. Print. Webb, George. "The Manhattan Project Revealed."Ed. Rosemary Mariner. Knoxville: The University of Tennessee Press, 2006. 43-61. Print.