EPISODE · Aug 4, 2023 · 45 MIN
Oppenheimer Adjacent: Filmmaker Steve James
from The Takeout with Major Garrett · host CBS News
In search of an 'Oppenheimer' companion piece? The new documentary, 'A Compassionate Spy,' is our focus on this week's episode, with the film's writer/director, Steve James, joining Major over Zoom. James' film tells the story of Ted Hall, the controversial Manhattan Project physicist who after just a year working at Los Alamos decided to pass secrets about the bomb to the Soviet Union. It's a real-life spy thriller that most Americans have never heard of, with a central character who James believes "acted on principle...[Hall] was not one of those spies that did it for money or glory."Be sure to stick around for the Outtake Especiale where James, a filmmaker with over a dozen documentaries on his resume (including producer Jamie Benson's top-five-film-of-all-time, 1994's 'Hoop Dreams'), shares a few of his personal film favorites.
What this episode covers
In search of an 'Oppenheimer' companion piece? The new documentary, 'A Compassionate Spy,' is our focus on this week's episode, with the film's writer/director, Steve James, joining Major over Zoom. James' film tells the story of Ted Hall, the controversial Manhattan Project physicist who after just a year working at Los Alamos decided to pass secrets about the bomb to the Soviet Union. It's a real-life spy thriller that most Americans have never heard of, with a central character who James believes "acted on principle...[Hall] was not one of those spies that did it for money or glory."Be sure to stick around for the Outtake Especiale where James, a filmmaker with over a dozen documentaries on his resume (including producer Jamie Benson's top-five-film-of-all-time, 1994's 'Hoop Dreams'), shares a few of his personal film favorites.
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Oppenheimer Adjacent: Filmmaker Steve James
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