MOVIE NEWS – If the initial Oppenheimer reactions are correct, Christopher Nolan’s next film will be a massive hit at the box office…

The first reviews of Christopher Nolan’s upcoming film Oppenheimer are in for its French premiere. According to these reactions, it lives up to the expectations of what one would expect from the auteur’s next big film.

Oppenheimer, in association with Universal, has a budget of $100 million, a running time of 3 hours, reportedly minimal CGI, and even some scenes in black and white, which seems to be the antithesis of the CGI blockbuster films that cost hundreds of millions of dollars.

And the film’s director is known for turning the industry on its head by using practical effects and thinking outside the box. Nolan Oppenheimer was praised by Kai Bird, co-author of the Pulitzer Prize-winning book American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer. Bird said he was “shocked”, and judging by the early premiere, journalists seem to agree.

The historical drama, starring Cillian Murphy, has also been toured in France before its US release. Nolan attended the French premiere. Reactions to the film are already pouring in on social media, with AP film critic Lindsey Bahr calling Oppenheimer “a spectacular achievement” and a “serious, philosophical, adult drama”. Josh Horowitz, host of Happy Sad Confused, called Oppenheimer “one of Nolan’s best works, if not his best”, high praise from the director of The Dark Knight and Interstellar. Others called Murphy’s performance “flawless” and “award-worthy”.

The Telegraph’s film critic Robbie Collins called it “a total knockout” and “split my brain open like a twitchy plutonium nucleus.” Vulture critic Bilge Ebiri called Oppenheimer “incredible”, “terrifying”, and “insanely detailed”. In contrast, The Sunday Times critic Jonathan Dean wrote that Oppenheimer is an “audacious, inventive, complex film to rattle its audience.”

So Oppenheimer promises to be a cinematic nuclear bomb, a massive success for Nolan after his previous film with Warner Bros, Tenet. While Oppenheimer marks Nolan’s move from Warner Bros. to Universal, Warner Bros. Discovery, Michael De Luca, and Pam Abdy reportedly want Nolan back. At the same time, other WBD executives have been criticised for arguably toxic relationships with their directors.

Since Discovery’s merger, the shift from cinema to content has been more evident than ever amid the WGA writers’ strike under WBD CEO David Zaslav.

Oppenheimer is released on the same day as Barbie. WBD refused to move the date after negotiating with Universal. This reportedly angered Nolan. This is not a good start to healing old wounds with the studio. Murphy, however, is in favour of audiences seeing both films. He said, “You can spend the whole day at the cinema. What’s better than that?” Murphy says the movie will be something different, so audiences may want to see the Nolan biopic first. Then Barbie, which is sure to be an unforgettable weekend.

Source: The Hollywood Reporter, Variety

A quick summary of the reviews of French critics who saw OPPENHEIMER yesterday:

– Everyone agrees that the film is very dense, perhaps the most dense of Nolan's filmography, but that it remains easy to understand, unlike Tenet.

– Ludwig Göransson's score is so extraordinary… pic.twitter.com/PUlhj7wvoL

— Christopher Nolan Art & Updates (@NolanAnalyst) July 12, 2023

My favorite Nolan scene ever is the interrogation scene from THE DARK KNIGHT.

To that point: OPPENHEIMER is a reminder that even if you strip away spectacle — spinning hallways, backward fights — he’s a masterful story teller who can make even small moments feel thrilling. pic.twitter.com/SjSoAZIGfy

— Jake Hamilton (@JakesTakes) July 11, 2023