The biographical thriller film “Oppenheimer Showtimes” was released in the United States and United Kingdom on July 21, 2023 ¹. The film, which was written and directed by Christopher Nolan, is based on the 2005 biography “American Prometheus” by Kai Bird and Martin J. Sherwin. “Oppenheimer” chronicles the life of J. Robert Oppenheimer, the American theoretical physicist who helped develop the first nuclear weapons during World War II. The film stars Cillian Murphy as Oppenheimer, alongside Robert Downey Jr., Emily Blunt, Matt Damon, Florence Pugh, Josh Hartnett, Casey Affleck, Rami Malek, and Kenneth Branagh.
Plot
The film follows Oppenheimer’s studies, his direction of the Los Alamos Laboratory, and his 1954 security hearing. In 1926, the 22-year-old doctoral student J. Robert Oppenheimer grapples with anxiety and homesickness while studying experimental quantum physics under Patrick Blackett at the University of Cambridge. Oppenheimer clashes with Blackett and leaves him a poisoned apple but later retrieves it. Visiting scientist Niels Bohr advises Oppenheimer to study theoretical physics at the University of Göttingen.
Cast
The film features an ensemble cast, including ¹:
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Cillian Murphy as J. Robert Oppenheimer
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Emily Blunt as Katherine “Kitty” Oppenheimer
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Matt Damon as Gen. Leslie Groves
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Robert Downey Jr. as Rear Admiral Lewis Strauss
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Florence Pugh as Jean Tatlock
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Josh Hartnett as Ernest Lawrence
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Casey Affleck as Boris Pash
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Rami Malek as David L. Hill
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Kenneth Branagh as Niels Bohr
Production
The film was announced in September 2021, and it is Nolan’s first film not distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures since “Memento” (2000), due to his conflicts regarding the studio’s simultaneous theatrical and HBO Max release schedule. Pre-production began by January 2022, and filming took place from February to May. The cinematographer, Hoyte van Hoytema, used a combination of IMAX 65 mm and 65 mm large-format film, including, for the first time, scenes in IMAX black-and-white film photography.
Reception
“Oppenheimer” premiered at Le Grand Rex in Paris on July 11, 2023, and was theatrically released in the United States and the United Kingdom ten days later by Universal Pictures. The film received critical acclaim and grossed over $976 million worldwide, becoming the third-highest-grossing film of 2023, the highest-grossing World War II-related film, the highest-grossing biographical film, and the second-highest-grossing R-rated film. “Oppenheimer” won seven Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Director for Nolan, Best Actor for Murphy, and Best Supporting Actor for Downey. It also won five Golden Globe Awards (including Best Motion Picture – Drama) and seven British Academy Film Awards (including Best Film), and was named one of the top ten films of 2023 by the National Board of Review and the American Film Institute.
