The official review embargo for Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer isn’t lifted until Wednesday, but writer-director Paul Schrader has some strong words about the World War II science epic.
Writing on Facebook, the Taxi Driver, Raging Bull and Last Temptation of Christ screenwriter called Oppenheimer: “The best, most important film of this century. If you see one film in cinemas this year it should be Oppenheimer. I’m not a Nolan groupie but this one blows the doors off the hinges.”
Oppenheimer stars Cillian Murphy as J. Robert Oppenheimer, the head of the World War II-era Manhattan Project, which was responsible for the creation of the atomic bomb.
Previous early reactions to the film coming out of its Paris world premiere earlier this month were also raves. Some samples:
Telegraph film critic Robbie Collins wrote on Twitter: “Am torn between being all coy and mysterious about Oppenheimer and just coming out and saying it’s a total knockout that split my brain open like a twitchy plutonium nucleus and left me sobbing through the end credits like I can’t even remember what else.”
Total Film’s Matt Maytum tweeted, “Oppenheimer left me stunned: a character study on the grandest scale, with a sublime central performance by Cillian Murphy. An epic historical drama but with a distinctly Nolan sensibility: the tension, structure, sense of scale, startling sound design, remarkable visuals. Wow.”
AP film writer Lindsey Bahr wrote on Twitter: “Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer is truly a spectacular achievement, in its truthful, concise adaptation, inventive storytelling and nuanced performances from Cillian Murphy, Emily Blunt, Robert Downey Jr., Matt Damon and the many, many others involved — some just for a scene. It’s hard to talk about something as dense as this in something as silly as a tweet or thread but Oppenheimer really is a serious, philosophical, adult drama that’s as tense and exciting as Dunkirk. And the big moment — THAT MOMENT — is awe inspiring.”
Nolan and his stars detailed the process of making the three-hour film in The Hollywood Reporter’s recent feature story. “There aren’t a lot of people running around on phones,” notes co-star Robert Downey Jr. “There’s no video village. There’s no chair with your name on it. It was focused and Spartan, almost a monastic approach to what we’re doing.”
Oppenheimer opens July 21 and is expected to make about $40 to $49 million across its opening weekend. It’s head-to-head rival Barbie is anticipated to earn about $90 to $110 million.
Aaron Couch contributed to this report.
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