The Manhattan Project 1986

In the sleepy upstate New York town of Ithaca, Dr. John Mathewson (no actor name provided) stumbles upon a groundbreaking process for refining plutonium to unprecedented purities. The United States government seizes the opportunity, masquerading as a medical company and bestowing upon him a state-of-the-art laboratory. As John settles into his new surroundings, he crosses paths with Elizabeth Stephens (no actor name provided), a real estate agent, while searching for the perfect apartment. His attempt to win her affections takes an unexpected turn when he invites her teenage son Paul’s tour of the lab, hoping to make a favorable impression.

Unbeknownst to John, Paul is no ordinary teenager. A whiz kid with an insatiable passion for science, he becomes increasingly suspicious of the lab’s true intentions after discovering a statistically improbable patch of five-leaf clover on the premises. As Paul and his aspiring journalist girlfriend, Jenny Anderman (no actor name provided), begin to unravel the truth behind the lab’s cover story, they decide to take matters into their own hands by stealing a container of plutonium as evidence.

Convinced that merely possessing the plutonium would not be enough to expose the lab’s sinister activities, Paul and Jenny concoct a plan to create the world’s first privately built nuclear device. They cleverly disguise their project as an entry for the New York Science Fair, with Paul convincing his mother and school that it’s about hamsters bred in darkness. Meanwhile, John, oblivious to the developing crisis, becomes increasingly confident in the lab’s ability to maintain its cover.

However, when the lab discovers that a container of plutonium has been replaced by a bottle of shampoo mixed with glitter, the game is afoot. A military investigation team, led by Lt. Colonel Conroy (no actor name provided), arrives on the scene and quickly zeroes in on Paul as the culprit behind the theft. As the agents close in, John, feeling personally responsible for the chaos, orchestrates a private meeting with Paul to persuade him to hand over the bomb before it’s too late.

Despite his efforts, Paul and Jenny manage to evade capture and escape from the science fair, only to hatch another plan to expose the lab on their own terms. In a daring move, Paul returns to the lab, this time armed with the nuclear device, while being surrounded by snipers and agents. As negotiations stall and tensions escalate, John attempts to intercede on Paul’s behalf, convinced that the teenager is not a genuine terrorist.

As the plutonium’s radioactive energy courses through the device, the countdown timer suddenly springs to life, accelerating its ticking rhythm with an ominous intensity. Paul proposes transporting the bomb to a nearby quarry, but John’s revelation that he had underestimated the consequences of his own plutonium refining process sends a chilling shiver down their spines: if detonated, the bomb would unleash a nuclear blast exponentially more devastating than the one that razed Hiroshima.

Panic sets in as all parties involved – including Paul (who), John, and Conroy – lay down their arms and join forces to defuse the ticking time bomb. With seconds ticking away, they frantically work together, employing every ounce of collective expertise to disassemble the device. In a heart-stopping moment, they manage to deactivate the bomb mere fractions of a second before its scheduled detonation.

As the dust settles, Conroy makes his move, deciding to apprehend Paul. However, John refuses to comply, and with a flourish, he swings open the laboratory door, revealing a crowd that has gathered outside – including Jenny and the press. As the scene fades to black, Paul is seen departing freely, leaving behind a trail of uncertainty and unspoken consequences.