LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Christopher Nolan's highly anticipated film 'Oppenheimer' has been making waves among early viewers, leaving them "devastated" and "unable to speak," according to the acclaimed director. The author of the book from which the film is inspired describes the movie as a "stunning artistic achievement."
The historical thriller delves into the life of J Robert Oppenheimer, the American theoretical physicist who played a pivotal role in the creation of the first atomic bomb during the Manhattan Project. It is set to release on July 21.
'Some people leave the movie absolutely devastated'
In an interview with Wired magazine, Nolan revealed the intense emotional impact the film had on its early viewers, stating, "Some people leave the movie absolutely devastated. They can't speak." He acknowledged the element of fear inherent in the history and underlying themes of the film but emphasized that the love depicted among the characters and their relationships is as powerful as anything he has ever done. "I mean, there’s an element of fear that’s there in the history and there in the underpinnings. But the love of the characters, the love of the relationships, is as strong as I’ve ever done.”
'It is an intense experience'
Nolan described 'Oppenheimer' as an intense experience, even comparing it to a horror movie based on feedback he received from another filmmaker. “It is an intense experience because it’s an intense story. I showed it to a filmmaker recently who said it’s kind of a horror movie. I don’t disagree.” The dark and weighty subject matter took a toll on Nolan himself, and he admitted to feeling a sense of relief upon completing the project. He explained, "As I started to finish the film, I started to feel this color that's not in my other films, just darkness. It's there. The film fights against that."
'I think it is going to be a stunning artistic achievement'
Based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning book 'American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J Robert Oppenheimer' by Kai Bird and the late Martin J Sherwin, the film explores Oppenheimer's paradoxical position as a man who risked destroying the world to save it. “I think it is going to be a stunning artistic achievement, and I have hopes it will actually stimulate a national, even global conversation about the issues that Oppenheimer was desperate to speak out about – about how to live in the atomic age, how to live with the bomb and about McCarthyism – what it means to be a patriot, and what is the role for a scientist in a society drenched with technology and science, to speak out about public issues, ”Kai Bird said earlier.
The cast of 'Oppenheimer' features some of Hollywood's most prominent names, including Cillian Murphy in the lead role of J Robert Oppenheimer and Emily Blunt portraying his wife, Katherine 'Kitty' Oppenheimer, a biologist and botanist. Florence Pugh stars as psychiatrist Jean Tatlock, Matt Damon as General Leslie Groves Jr, and Robert Downey Jr as Lewis Strauss, a founding commissioner of the US Atomic Energy Commission. Rami Malek and Kenneth Branagh also join the ensemble. 'Oppenheimer' is set to release on July 21, offering audiences an intense and thought-provoking cinematic experience that leaves a lasting impact.
