Christopher Nolan’s upcoming filmOppenheimerreceived early reactions from audiences who attended the France premiere. According to these responses,Oppenheimermeets the level of expectation that can be anticipated from the filmmaking auteur’s next big movie.OppenheimerwithUniversalhas a $100 million budget, a run-time of 3 hours, reportedly no CGI, and even some scenes in black and white, which appears to represent the antithesis to the CGI-heavy blockbuster film that cost hundreds of millions of dollars. It also has a director known for flipping the industry on its head with his out-of-the-box thinking and use of practical effects.Nolan’sOppenheimerreceived praise from Kai Bird, the co-author of the Pulitzer-winning bookAmerican Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer, who was left “stunned,” and journalists seem to agree based on the early premiere.RELATED:Christian Bale Would Return As Batman Again If Christopher Nolan AskedThe historical drama starring Cillian Murphy opened in France before its domestic release, with Nolan attending the France premiere. Social media reactions to the film have come in, with AP film writer Lindsey Bahr callingOppenheimera “spectacular achievement” and a “serious, philosophical, adult drama.” Josh Horowitz, host of Happy Sad Confused, callsOppenheimer“one of if not Nolan’s best work,” which is high praise for the director ofThe Dark KnightandInterstellar. Others have called Murphy’s performance “flawless” and “awards worthy,” andTelegraphfilm critic Robbie Collins expressed that it is a “total knockout” and “split my brain open like a twitchy plutonium nucleus.”Vulturecritic Bilge Ebiri callsOppenheimer“incredible,” “fearsome,” and “insanely detailed,” andThe Sunday Times' Jonathan Dean saysOppenheimeris an “audacious, inventive, complex film to rattle its audience.”
The fuse lit forOppenheimerlooks to be as good as the atomic bomb is big, which is a huge success for Nolan following his previous filmTenetwith Warner Bros. Nolan was upset with WB for not supportingTenetin its shift to a content-driven business strategy. WhileOppenheimerrepresentsNolan’s move from Warner Bros. to Universal, Michael De Luca and Pam Abdy at Warner Bros. Discovery reportedly want Nolan back (viaVariety). However, other WBD executives have been criticized for having an arguably toxic relationship with their directors. Since the Discovery merger, the shift from cinema to content is now more apparent than ever under WBD CEO David Zaslav amid the WGA writers' strike.
Oppenheimerreleases on the same day asBarbie, and WBD refused to move the date after being in talks with Universal, which reportedly upset Nolan and isn’t a good start to healing old wounds with the studio. However, Murphy supports audiences seeing both movies, expressing, “You can spend the whole day at the cinema. What’s better than that?” According to Murphy,Oppenheimerwill be something different, so audiences may want to see the Nolan biopic first and then watchBarbieafter for what is certainly to be an unforgettable weekend.
