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Christopher Nolan's next project - Oppenheimer and the A-Bomb?

77,956 Views | 759 Replies | Last: 2 yr ago by Chipotlemonger
TCTTS
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I don't know what the point was of releasing this, especially so soon to the release of the movie itself, but here's a FIVE-MINUTE trailer, with all kinds of new footage and dialogue. Way more subdued, way more under-the-skin than all other marketing materials so far, but probably the most effective trailer yet.

Good gosh, this is going to be incredible.

That said, while it's hard to "spoil" this movie, I can't say I recommend watching this if you want to remain as fresh as possible going in...

Bunk Moreland
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Nope. Not for me. I'll wait one more week.
Sazerac
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It has IMAX but not 70mm
Cliff.Booth
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BadMoonRisin
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TCTTS said:

I don't know what the point was of releasing this, especially so soon to the release of the movie itself, but here's a FIVE-MINUTE trailer, with all kinds of new footage and dialogue. Way more subdued, way more under-the-skin than all other marketing materials so far, but probably the most effective trailer yet.

Good gosh, this is going to be incredible.

That said, while it's hard to "spoil" this movie, I can't say I recommend watching this if you want to remain as fresh as possible going in...


Malachi Constant
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I watched it. I don't think it spoiled too much, but I would recommend not watching if you want to go in totally blind.

What I'm most excited for is Goransson's score. I mean WOW.
TCTTS
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For the history buffs, at the risk of coming across as clueless here, I do have one historical/sequence-of-events question that this footage brings up, based on one conversation in particular…

I'm under the impression that the black-and-white footage takes place *after* the first atomic bomb test, and likely even after the war has ended. If so, if they've already all left Los Alamos, and the first test has already happened, what is Robert Downey Jr. talking about when he's chastising them, asking what it was they even did at Los Alamos? Also, if the first test was already successful, what is Oppenheimer talking about when he says "Not unless we start it," re: the race against the Soviets? Didn't Oppenheimer & co already start - and win - it? Or is this footage somehow from before the test? But if so, why aren't they all *at* Los Alamos? This whole bit was so confusing to me.
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TCTTS
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Right, I know all that, but it doesn't answer my question.
Cliff.Booth
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It doesn't sound like that dialogue is coming in any kind of linear way, because it doesn't make sense.
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TCTTS
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That's what's so weird. It's all in the same room, with the same characters, at presumably the same time, but feels like conversations from two or three different points in the movie, both before and after they did theyfirst test.
Michael Cera Palin
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TCTTS said:

For the history buffs, at the risk of coming across as clueless here, I do have one historical/sequence-of-events question that this footage brings up, based on one conversation in particular…

I'm under the impression that the black-and-white footage takes place *after* the first atomic bomb test, and likely even after the war has ended. If so, if they've already all left Los Alamos, and the first test has already happened, what is Robert Downey Jr. talking about when he's chastising them, asking what it was they even did at Los Alamos? Also, if the first test was already successful, what is Oppenheimer talking about when he says "Not unless we start it," re: the race against the Soviets? Didn't Oppenheimer & co already start - and win - it? Or is this footage somehow from before the test? But if so, why aren't they all *at* Los Alamos? This whole bit was so confusing to me.


After the war Oppenheimer in his advisory role through the Atomic Energy Commission was trying to advocate for a global nuclear coalition (through the UN) to take all nuclear material, his belief being no single country could be trusted with the new weapons. Many in DC balked at that as America had nuclear supremacy.Oppenheimer felt that by not giving up nuclear supremacy, America was going to provoke the Soviets into brash actions. He wanted diplomacy between the 2 nations.

Post WWII the Western Ally forces shrunk to very low numbers as soldiers returned home from Europe. Meanwhile the Soviet army was still large in number and the fear was they would launch an invasion to take the rest of Europe. The common belief among Washington was that US nuclear weapons were the only thing preventing the Soviets from doing this.

Lewis Strauss was Oppenheimer's #1 enemy after the war and did everything in his power to bring forward the clearance hearings (and rig it so Oppenheimer would lose). The scene you're seeing is Strauss coming to realize America's nuclear supremacy was over, and in all likelihood it was because of espionage at Los Alamos during the war. The exchange about firing the first shot in a race is a deep argument between him and Oppenheimer about how the weapons should've been handled immediately after the war
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TCTTS
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Gotcha. I had a feeling it was something along these lines, but Downey Jr.'s one line asking what they even did out in Los Alamos was confusing me, along with the "start" of the race they we referring to. But in this context, both of those make perfect sense. So, to me, it feels like this could potentially be the first scene of the black-and-white footage, that will ultimately lead to the hearings, spliced among the primary color story. Pretty cool. Thanks a ton for the explainer.
BenTheGoodAg
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TCTTS said:

For the history buffs, at the risk of coming across as clueless here, I do have one historical/sequence-of-events question that this footage brings up, based on one conversation in particular…

I'm under the impression that the black-and-white footage takes place *after* the first atomic bomb test, and likely even after the war has ended. If so, if they've already all left Los Alamos, and the first test has already happened, what is Robert Downey Jr. talking about when he's chastising them, asking what it was they even did at Los Alamos? Also, if the first test was already successful, what is Oppenheimer talking about when he says "Not unless we start it," re: the race against the Soviets? Didn't Oppenheimer & co already start - and win - it? Or is this footage somehow from before the test? But if so, why aren't they all *at* Los Alamos? This whole bit was so confusing to me.
This is clearly from after, when the Soviets detonated their first weapon in '49. Speculation - I think it's cut strangely, so you're missing context beforehand, but they're probably talking about the arms race, ie the build-up of a stockpile. It took a huge amount of resources to build a few weapons, so I think Oppenheimer is assuming the US still has some manufacturing advantage in a race between cold war powers and they should take advantage of it, ie start building up a stockpile, but Strauss is pointing back to the evidence that the Soviets have basically caught up and already started building a stockpile, and basically shot the "starting gun" in the race to build up.

Just my guess.
TCTTS
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C@LAg said:

for the record, i find it ridiculous that we are spoiler tagging actual world history


I was thinking the exact same thing, but seeing at it pertains to the untraditional structure of the movie, I didn't want to risk pissing anyone off.
TCTTS
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Makes sense, and is exactly in line with what Michael was saying. Thanks.
Cliff.Booth
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I'll be honest, I didn't expect the movie to extend that far after WWII. Man....I'm so intrigued by this. I keep remembering that with Dunkirk I was already excited just because that episode of history is cool but then what Nolan did with it was just so unexpected. That's why I'm hyped to see how this is done.
TCTTS
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Cinco Ranch Aggie
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Had to switch my tickets from 7/21 to 7/23 since I found out this week that I have to be in Dallas on the 21st. Boo.

Oh well. Seeing on the ONYX screen at the Star Cinema Grill in Richmond.
Cinco Ranch Aggie
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Bregxit said:

Cinco Ranch Aggie said:

Had to switch my tickets from 7/21 to 7/23 since I found out this week that I have to be in Dallas on the 21st. Boo.

Oh well. Seeing on the ONYX screen at the Star Cinema Grill in Richmond.
Why not get tix for 70mm while you're in Dallas?
The thought did cross my mind, but the wife nixed it in lieu of spending time with our oldest who lives in the area.
Brian Earl Spilner
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Sazerac said:

It has IMAX but not 70mm


Since when? I saw TDK there in 70mm. I guess it might have changed formats since then?
Claude!
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Tobias Funke said:

Wow I haven't checked on this thread in weeks and didn't expect this.

Let me guess, the bomb is gay? The DP tweeted about Hunter Biden? Nolan isn't vaccinated? What is it now, ya bozos?
Of course the bomb is gay. Fat Man and Little Boy? Clearly an allegory to a Bear/Twink relationship.
BenTheGoodAg
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Geez guys. The bomb wasn't gay…

The bomber was.
JCA1
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BenTheGoodAg said:

Geez guys. The bomb wasn't gay…

The bomber was.


Pretty sure the bomb wore a t-shirt that said "I'm not gay but my plane is."
Brian Earl Spilner
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double aught
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Just booked a seat at the 70mm IMAX in Dallas after watching that video. It was only ten bucks!
TCTTS
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Brian Earl Spilner
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My theater shows it before EVERY IMAX movie, and it's still showing the same "11 months" version. Bugs me every time.
TCTTS
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So good…

TCTTS
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Cliff.Booth
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Possible spoiler

BenTheGoodAg
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TCTTS said:


Hydrogen bomb?
 
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