Film Christopher Nolan's 'Oppenheimer'

[calodo2003]

To me it just did not seem to carry the same weight as the bomb and its implications on the world. I also believe Nolan wanting to have some kind of "reveal" for this info actually made it worse. It would have carried much more weight if the opening itself had established the stakes between the two. Still trying to have someone denied a cabinet position as one of the cornerstones of the conclusion was a bit of nothing-burger for me.

That was Oppenheimer's only recourse, through the Senate. Strauss ended up being the only cabinet nominee in decades (a century?) to not be confirmed. Oppenheimer knew Strauss felt that such a job would be befitting of his s/e status, thus torpedoing it would be quite the revenge as Strauss was the main impetus behind the hearing that kept Oppenheimer from getting his clearance revoked, thus ending a part of his career.

 

[whitbyviking]

Of course, starring Cillian Murphy

Does any other director have such clear favorites? Seems like he has made it a rule that at least one of Murphy, Tom Hardy and Michael Caine has to be in his movies.

I raise you a Tim Burton

 

[whitbyviking]

Or history?

Not to Hollywood it seems.

 

[whitbyviking]

I dont know about New Mexico, but I do know about St George in Utah. Basically, everyone got cancer.

At the time the government told everyone that it was totally safe. From 1951 to 1962 the AEC detonated more than 100 bombs that send massive amounts of radioactive dust across the valleys and canyons of southern Utah and norther Arizona. Families would gather at vantage points and watch like it was a fireworks display. Then they'd drive home as the ash fell all over their communities.

In 1953 the AEC dropped a 51 kiloton bomb and a 32 kiloton bomb in the area. It coated St George and other towns in grey ash. Thousands of sheep died soon after but the AEC blamed that on cold weather.

It was a year after this that a movie crew turned up to shoot The Conqueror. That movie you've never seen, but will have heard of because Wayne tries to pass as Asian. And it's as racist looking as it sounds. Theres a picture of Wayne and his sons holding a Geiger counter and apparently the thing was going bat shit. Wayne thought it was broken and slapped it a few times. Howard Huges would later scoop up a lot of soil and take it back to hollywood for reshoots.

Over a hundred thousand people in the area have been affected by the fallout. The Government denied anything was wrong. That the tests hadn't caused any of the issues. But the reality was actually that all that ash, all that fallout, the radioactivity everything. It was everywhere. It was in the air, it was in their food, it was in their water. A study done in 1984 showed that lukemia levels were 5 times higher in the area than anywhere else in the world. And the finding was even more outrageous, because the people there were all mormons. They didn't drink or smoke, at leas not like everywhere else in America.

During the 1980s, lawsuits started and the government denials of any issues or links came crashing down when AEC reports came to light that showed that they had known all along about the cause and the effect. They had downplayed and distorted the facts for decades. In 1990 Congress passed the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act. A fund that was set up for "downwinders" as they called themselves, who got cancer or any serious illness that was linked to above ground testing. The compensation was capped at 50k per person and only includes the first generation of those exposed. Their kids and grandkids are shit out of luck. The fund as dished out over 2 billion dollars since 1990. Theres a clinic in St George that averages 140 new cancer patients every year.

And the worst thing about all of this, is that it only every comes up when people google "how did John Wayne die?".

Since 1945 the US has conducted over 1000 tests. The last was in 1992. The peak was in 1962 when the tested 96 bombs in a single year.

This is part of Oppenheimer's legacy. Of course, if it wasn't him, it would have been someone else. So he shouldn't have felt too bad about it.

Excellent post from an information point of view, subject obviously not so, adds a lot of context to the film when I eventually see it

 

[AaronRedDevil]

You know growing up watching Drake and Josh. I'd never think that fat kid would be in a Christopher Nolan movie with Cillian Murphy in a scene together. What the feck. Fair play to him.

 

[BayernFan87]

I think the b&w scenes are Strauss's Pov/narration.
And the color scenes are Oppenheimers'

Case in point the pond scene with Einstein and Oppenheimer.
Only when we see the actual conversation between the two is the scene in color. Rest of the times - which are are all Strauss's Pov - that is in b&w

Ah good point, i think you are right

 

[Wibble]

What a load of rubbish. Nicholas Cage would have improved things hugely.

https://www.redcafe.net/threads/the-redcafe-movie-review-thread.165633/page-1233#post-30825313

 

[Sweet Square]

Seating is somewhat key.

Tweet

— Twitter API (@user) date

 

[horsechoker]

Tweet

— Twitter API (@user) date

 

[FrankDrebin]

Tweet

— Twitter API (@user) date

 

[calodo2003]

Tweet

— Twitter API (@user) date

No lie

 

[horsechoker]

 

[Big Andy]

Just been to see it, thought it was alright as a film. Solid acting from Cillian Murphy and Doc Browney Jr, but is it this seminal, must see, Nolan is a genius “film for the ages” it’s made out to be? Not for me.

 

[Berbasbullet]

Enjoyed the Harry Maguire cameo.

Also surprised they didn't show the "I am destroyer of worlds" speech.

 

[Wibble]

Complaining about the non-linear storytelling in Nolan's work is similar to getting out of a Tarantino film wishing that suspense hadn't depended so much on violence. Nolan wants to be in total control of the narrative. He tells a story in his own terms, it's his thing. Anyway, i'm crossing my fingers and i hope this one's as good as people on here claim it is because his latest work gives the impression that his peak is behind him.

And in this case the non-linear storytelling wasn't simply for effect. It was far more a linear story with flashbacks than anything else.

 

[sport2793]

Amazing film, definitely a best picture nominee for me.

 

[Vialli_92]

Amazing film, definitely a best picture nominee for me.

I would agree, it's really a unique story well put together. The acting was really on point and for 3 hours I was glued to the screen trying to take in the whole movie.

The last hour was a masterpiece perfect buildup to everything and excellent pacing all round.

Nice history lessons in there as well, I might consider to go watch it in IMAX now.

 

[sport2793]

I would agree, it's really a unique story well put together. The acting was really on point and for 3 hours I was glued to the screen trying to take in the whole movie.

The last hour was a masterpiece perfect buildup to everything and excellent pacing all round.

Nice history lessons in there as well, I might consider to go watch it in IMAX now.

When I saw the IMDB rating I thought, "well it's just super fans up voting it" but honestly I think 8.7 and above would be fair for this film, it's definitely better than some of the films currently in the top 25 on imdb having watched all of them.

 

[MoskvaRed]

Thought it was good to very good but not great. For me, a bit too much focus on the backstabbing in Washington and not quite enough exposition of the enormous scale and challenge of the Manhattan project. I’m guessing that focus might derive from “American Prometheus” (which I haven’t read). Very well acted though and, as ever with Nolan, some beautiful cinematography.

 

[Guy Incognito]

You know growing up watching Drake and Josh. I'd never think that fat kid would be in a Christopher Nolan movie with Cillian Murphy in a scene together. What the feck. Fair play to him.

Had an important role to play too!

Enjoyed the film. Great cinematography, especially *that* scene in the gym with the victory speech. Can see Nolan and Murphy getting the big noms.

 

[Kaush949]

Of course, starring Cillian Murphy

Does any other director have such clear favorites? Seems like he has made it a rule that at least one of Murphy, Tom Hardy and Michael Caine has to be in his movies.

Martin Scorsese - Dicaprio/ De Nero
Tarantino - Sam L Jackson
Tim Burton - Johny Depp / Helena Bonham Carter
Spielberg - Tom Hanks / Tom Cruise

 

[Cascarino]

Spielberg - Tom Cruise

I agree with the others but when it comes to this combination only Minority Report comes to mind. I can’t think of any others off the top of my head.

Wes Anderson likes working with certain actors quite a lot. The Coen brothers too. Takashi Shimura appeared in most Kurosawa films and there’s a lot of them.

 

[fergosaurus]

Saw it earlier today and thought it was great. Best film I've seen in years, the three hours flew by.

 

[Camilo]

I thought it was a bit shit. Couldn't hear a word of dialogue, pacing was incessant, and it just kind of, happened.

I mean, for what it is they couldn't have done much better, save for turning the dialogue up 6db. But I can't help feeling it was just a posh dramatised documentary - fine, but I'd have preferred and Inglorious Basterds, alternate reality version of something like this.

 

[Sweet Square]

Does any other director have such clear favorites?

Tsai Ming Liang & Lee Kang Sheng = 11 feature films.

 

[Salt Bailly]

Lots of things such as art or music could be considered important to have in a general sense but it seems a very odd thing to call a blockbuster biopic, no matter how interesting the person or key event. Why is it important as a film exactly?

Having just come out of it, I could absolutely see why somebody would think the film carries a message that is as important as it gets for the quest for human survival.

For me personally? It was just a fantastic character study or a fascinating man, and every single member of the cast and crew brought their A-Game. I have never been a Cillian Murphy enthusiast, but he was exemplary. AS was RDJ. Nolan has shown a maturity here that we haven't seen from him before and it makes me insanely excited for what comes next.

9/10

 

[Salt Bailly]

guys we're talking about Nolan's movies.
they aren't important. get over it.

You are wrong

 

[Amar__]

Having just come out of it, I could absolutely see why somebody would think the film carries a message that is as important as it gets for the quest for human survival.

For me personally? It was just a fantastic character study or a fascinating man, and every single member of the cast and crew brought their A-Game. I have never been a Cillian Murphy enthusiast, but he was exemplary. AS was RDJ. Nolan has shown a maturity here that we haven't seen from him before and it makes me insanely excited for what comes next.

9/10

So, can you say what's the message? You can write in spoilers.

 

[Salt Bailly]

So, can you say what's the message? You can write in spoilers.

Unfortunately, no one can be told what the message is. You have to see it for yourself.

 

[Mickeza]

I thought it was rather brilliant but despite spending 3 hours watching a film all about Oppenheimer I don’t think I left having any real idea about who he actually was outside of the facts of what he did, who he fecked and where he studied. Maybe that was the point.

 

[Amar__]

Unfortunately, no one can be told what the message is. You have to see it for yourself.

I totally expected this kind of answer.

Of course I'll watch the movie in next few weeks, but I doubt I'll learn something very important.

 

[Salt Bailly]

I totally expected this kind of answer.

Of course I'll watch the movie in next few weeks, but I doubt I'll learn something very important.

I didn't learn anything important either, but maybe if the right person sees it at the right time it will turn out to be important after all.

How many artists down the years have been aware of the fact that their creation changed the world? Probably next to none. That's why every piece of art is important. Who knows who might discover it at just right instance.

I have burrowed into a post-oppenheimer vodka fueled rabbit hole so feel free to disregard all responses since 19:00gmt

He died of throat cancer. He must have smoked 200 on screen at least.

 

[Camilo]

I totally expected this kind of answer.

Of course I'll watch the movie in next few weeks, but I doubt I'll learn something very important.

You'll learn that you should bring an ear trumpet to the cinema when watching a Nolan movie.

There's no important message. ""Oh no, bombs are bad, but got to have bombs" or some shit.

 

[Moby]

You'll learn that you should bring an ear trumpet to the cinema when watching a Nolan movie.

There's no important message. ""Oh no, bombs are bad, but got to have bombs" or some shit.

I had no such audio issues. Maybe you need to pick a better cinema?

 

[Salt Bailly]

You'll learn that you should bring an ear trumpet to the cinema when watching a Nolan movie.

There's no important message. ""Oh no, bombs are bad, but got to have bombs" or some shit.

Tell me more about this ear trumpet of which you speak.

 

[Camilo]

I had no such audio issues. Maybe you need to pick a better cinema?

Every Nolan film is the same. It's well documented.

 

[Scandi Red]

Is good?

 

[calodo2003]

Is good?

Yes.

 

[Scandi Red]

Yes.

Tenks.

 

[Wibble]

Every Nolan film is the same. It's well documented.

The audio was excellent and very clear.