（C） Universal Pictures. All Rights Reserved.
Director Christopher Nolan’s latest film “Oppenheimer” will be released nationwide from March 29th, simultaneously in IMAX®, 35mm film, and Dolby Cinema®. Director Christopher Nolan won his first Academy Award for Best Picture (along with Emma Thomas and Charles Roven) and Best Director, and Japan’s first winner for Best Visual Effects. A conversation with director Takashi Yamazaki of “Godzilla-1.0” was held.
“Oppenheimer” Christopher Nolan x Takashi Yamazaki special conversation
The special interview video begins with Director Yamazaki’s thoughts, “It stimulated my intellectual curiosity.” “What kind of social position was the person who opened Pandora’s box?” The story is written by rearranging the chronology, making it entertainment with a hard theme.It is a very interesting and wonderful work. Director Yamazaki said, “It’s amazing how Heimer sees a cruel vision, and the glory and misery are captured in the same screen.” Director Nolan responded, “What I’m interested in in a story is the story of a brilliant person. It is about how people understand the world, make amazing leaps of creativity, and use technology to make things possible, and the horrifying implications that lie behind it.The contrast is reflected in the film, and the audience can feel it directly. “I want the audience to experience that tension,” he said, “We can already see a glimpse of the horror that awaits us as we move forward with development.However, due to the circumstances of the time, we had no choice but to act.” “I wanted it to be that way,” he recalled. He says he aimed for an “immersive experience” where he could step into the brain of a genius physicist and share with the audience what he was feeling at that moment.
Director Yamazaki said that he was amazed at the portrayal, “He doesn’t decide who is bad or who is great, and the two are harmoniously integrated.” Director Nolan said, “That was important to me in telling the story, and when I played the role of Oppenheimer, I also talked a lot with Cillian Murphy. I wanted the audience to understand Oppenheimer rather than judge him. I wanted people to experience both sides of this character and think about what they would do about the choices he made. I wish people would have seen it.The appeal of movies is that you can understand the thoughts and feelings of people whose thoughts and positions are completely different from your own,” he said, adding that his top priority was to leave it up to each audience member to decide how they would perceive the movie. There is.
Director Yamazaki, who was inspired by Oppenheimer, declared, “Japan must make a film in which it responds,” to which Director Nolan replied, “If I were to make an answer film, I can’t think of a better director than Director Yamazaki. I hope he can make it a reality.I look forward to seeing more of Director Yamazaki’s works in the future.”He responds with a smile.
Regarding his commitment to images, director Nolan says, “I always want to make films that appeal to the senses of the audience.I have shot many of my films on 70mm film for IMAX®.The colors are amazingly clear and colorful. This is because the reproduction quality is high.When projected on a large screen, the screen frame disappears and you can become immersed in the movie.By combining the sound and music of the theater’s various sound systems, you can draw the audience into the story. I would like to continue to cherish this kind of immersive feeling in my filmmaking.” Director Yamazaki concluded the conversation by saying, “It really conveyed the feeling.I think it’s a work that can only be done with IMAX®.”
Along with the release of the special interview video, comments from celebrities have arrived. Be sure to check out the comments from celebrities from various fields who have seen “Oppenheimer.”
■Ken Watanabe comment
“Chris Nolan” is a director who stirs the brains not only for me but also for many viewers.
Starting with “Memento,” he continued with “Inception” and “TENET,” stories about people wandering through time and space, and this time, “Oppenheimer” depicts a genius physicist, the man who developed the atomic bomb.
Japan is also a country that suffered from atomic bombs, so I was worried whether this movie would be released there. I, too, timidly sat down to the preview.
The man who created the bomb that could end the world even today was depicted in a detailed and eccentric manner. His ally Cillian Murphy lived it meticulously. A man who is untidy, sincere, and drifts with the times.
How did the world view the reality of radiation exposure in his hallucinations? I think this is a work that Japanese audiences should also see.
■Takashi Yamazaki (film director) comment
Director Nolan’s works always stimulate my intellectual curiosity. The story reveals the human nature of Oppenheimer, a scientist whose good and evil are harmoniously integrated while completing a near-perfect spectacle, and who has opened Pandora’s box, and reveals his thoughts and social status in a chronological order. Although it is a difficult theme to rearrange, it was beautifully created as entertainment. I want you to witness what was happening at that time.
■ Kazuya Shiraishi (film director) comment
An amazing movie experience. Witness the moment when humanity creates demons with trembling all over.
Nolan’s masterpiece, an anti-war film that takes a straightforward approach. It’s definitely a must-see this year.
■Shinsugu Higuchi (film director) comment
How do you tell a story in a movie? Would you like to introduce a real person who was at the mercy of a strange fate?
There is a world swirling with complex chaos that cannot be simplified like good and evil.
You can experience life like you’ve never experienced before. This is a new movie.
■Masato Harada (film director) comment
Christopher Nolan has achieved a feat comparable to that of “Citizen Kane,” which shines brightly in the history of film. From the introduction that plunges you into the depths of Oppenheimer’s mind with the impact of sound and light, to the final part, where a brilliant showdown between actors collides and scatters sparks like a chain reaction of nuclear fission, you will be overwhelmed by Nolan’s precise film dynamics. . As a Japanese filmmaker, I felt a strong sense of his obligation to respond to this masterpiece by portraying in detail the people of Hiroshima and Nagasaki who were bathed in the rain of destruction. Ta.
■Tatsuya Mori (film director/writer) comment
Evaluation of the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The Red Scare raged on like a witch hunt. and the combination of cutting-edge science and military (dual use). Nolan cuts head-on into the three dark sides of America’s post-war era.
The method is exactly like the movie itself. Images and sounds overflowing like a muddy stream. That’s why Oppenheimer’s anguish and despair are clearly visible. I can definitely say that. It’s definitely Nolan’s best work.
■Fumiyo Kouno (manga artist “In This Corner of the World”) Comments
There was no way out in this movie that “nuclear weapons were the work of a mad genius.”
Science smiles on everyone, and selfishness sets a trap everywhere. However, people can always have good intentions. I would like to express my gratitude to everyone involved in this film for their goodwill and courage.
■Robert Campbell (Japanese literature researcher) Comments
The genius, arrogance, misjudgment, and quiet downfall that color the life of a genius physicist. This is a masterpiece that depicts the development of terrifying weapons in detail, and by never straying far from the main character’s perspective, it vividly exposes the contradictions of the United States, which is still unable to face destruction squarely, and the man himself.
■Comment from Koji Hashimoto (physicist)
My heart was deeply gouged. Physics changes the world, and this is deeply connected to the life emotions of physicists. What I had felt vaguely was transformed into a very real experience, and it touched my heart all at once. There was nothing I could do. This is a masterpiece that not only approaches the heart of a physicist, but also questions humanity.
■Comments from Masao Tomonaga (Doctor/Chairman of the Nagasaki Prefecture Atomic Bomb Survivor Handbook Friends Association)
Director Christopher Nolan depicts the life of Oppenheimer, the man responsible for manufacturing the first atomic bomb in human history. The first half realistically depicts the success of a thoroughly confidential experiment. Amidst his success, Oppie begins to worry that he is the god of death. When he meets with President Truman, he confesses his troubles. He declares that Truman will never bring in such a weakling again. In the second half, the story becomes a showdown between politicians on the US side and scientists who understand the inhumanity of nuclear weapons, resisting the US nuclear policy that is moving from atomic bombs to hydrogen bombs, and is finally expelled from the nuclear world. This also leads to the fundamental problem of the current world, where a world without nuclear weapons is becoming more and more distant. Here you can sense director Nolan’s hidden message of holding politicians accountable.
■Jun Hori (journalist) Comment
Even after experiencing so many tragedies, there are things that we still do not have. Things that we ignore, find bothersome, and push away. That is involvement in “politics”. The power struggle between foolish politicians continues to be ignored, reducing science to violence. You should see this movie because you are Japanese.
■Mikio Shibayama (critic) Comment
“Oppenheimer” reminds me of “Lawrence of Arabia.” Both are clear, incisive, and sensitive films about people who were controversial in their reviews. Christopher Nolan paints this portrait, which resembles a mysterious chemical symbol, with remarkable skill. I was struck by the power of accumulating not only images but also emotions and obsessions.
■Naomi Trauden (Model/Talent) Comment
This movie was full of shocks. The worldview of the beautiful images and music makes you wonder if this is how the world is seen by geniuses. The depth of the story is a combination of the great waves of history and people’s thoughts. The excitement of unknown technologies that will change the world and the fear of their influence have left the developers’ hands, but in the end, they cannot decide their fate.
Humans cannot suppress their intellectual curiosity, and new technologies cannot always be used in desirable ways. I can’t help but imagine what messages the geniuses of the past will leave behind for us, who live in a world where technology is rapidly advancing.
What do we who live in Japan, a country that has suffered from atomic bombs, feel from this film and what message can we convey to the world?
■ Comment from Takashi Hiraoka (former Mayor of Hiroshima)
Oppenheimer is not a hero, but a man full of contradictions.
The scientist’s research results were used by the state as a murder weapon, leaving him to suffer moral responsibility.
The fear he felt about the destruction of the world has now become a reality and covers our world.
He became the target of a red scare because he spoke out about the dangers of keeping the nuclear threat a secret. The atmosphere of those days is still present today.
The sight of the laboratory staff stomping their feet and welcoming him as a hero seems to suggest a situation in which the people are entangled with the state.
Therefore, I would like to watch it again and think about what it means to be a nation that believes in nuclear deterrence.
■Nobuhiro Hosoki (film writer living in New York) Comments
The ripples of invention that the mysterious theoretical physicist Robert Oppenheimer heard became the all-engulfing wave of the unimaginable atomic bomb, echoing in our souls across the ocean of history, and the war of radioactivity. It leaves behind deep traces. An unforgettable masterpiece.
■Comment from Itsuko Hirai (film writer living in LA)
The film depicts in unprecedented cinematic expression the confusion and suffering of a man whose discovery of the century not only forever changed the future of humanity, but also was abandoned by his country, immersing the audience in the story. This is an “anti-war film” that does not glorify Oppenheimer’s development of the atomic bomb, but instead depicts the fate of a researcher tormented by tragedy and regret beyond imagination.
■Yoichi Ochiai (computer scientist) Comments
If we look at the Manhattan Project in chronological order, it becomes a monotonous paean to humanity. Expected but unexpected results, use and praise, and self-criticism are internal conflicts that are difficult for anyone other than the researcher to understand. The flavor of the work is created by presenting a story that cuts into that inner conflict, intertwining the chronological order. Is it difficult to understand? No such thing. Above all, the overwhelming energy of the atomic bomb is simply violent, filling us with sound and light, and evokes various feelings of catharsis, awe, and sadness in our minds.
■Arthur Binard (poet/picture book writer) Comments
There has never been a movie that depicts physics in such a thrilling way. What’s more, it gives us an insider’s view of the inside of a top-secret development project. The stimulation of wonderful lines constantly awakens the brain. I am reminded that Oppenheimer and his colleagues, who created humanity’s first nuclear weapon, were also the first Hibakusha.
■Shinsuke Kasai (Announcer) Comments
The release in Japan was much later than in the rest of the world. Is it too harsh for Japanese people?
no! It is a strong anti-war film, depicting the struggles of a sensitive scientist with unimaginable editing and powerful sound, and there has never been a biographical film that deserves to be seen in IMAX.
Winning seven Academy Awards isn’t just for fun. America’s basic spirit in war has not changed. This is a movie that only Japanese people should see.
■Kazuhiro Maejima (political scientist) Comments
For Oppenheimer, a Jew, succeeding in developing the atomic bomb before the Nazis did was also a struggle against discrimination. However, that “great success” was the beginning of an expanded reproduction of permanent suffering. This movie allows you to relive Oppenheimer’s mental movements leading up to that point.
■Yuri Nakae (actress/writer/singer) Comment
I was present at a terrifying and exciting scene that could have caused the world to collapse.
The movie “Oppenheimer” is not an art to be seen, but an art to be experienced.
■Erika Kobayashi (author/manga artist) Comment
I shudder at the passion, desire, arrogance and pettiness of humans and men who try to obtain the power of God. The beauty, fear, and self-centered thinking are woven together with brutal precision for us to experience.
▼Movie information
“Oppenheimer”
Nationwide roadshow from March 29th (Friday)
Simultaneously released at 50 IMAX® theaters nationwide, 10 Dolby Cinema® screens nationwide, and 35mm film version 109 Cinemas Premium Shinjuku
Director/Screenplay/Producer: Christopher Nolan
Producer: Emma Thomas / Charles Roven
Cast: Cillian Murphy / Emily Blunt / Matt Damon / Robert Downey Jr. / Florence Pugh / Josh Hartnett / Casey Affleck / Rami Malek / Kenneth Branagh
Original work: Kai Bird / Martin J. Sherwin “Oppenheimer” (2006 Pulitzer Prize winner / Hayakawa Bunko)
Official site:https://www.oppenheimermovie.jp/
（C） Universal Pictures. All Rights Reserved.
IMAX® is a registered trademark of IMAX Corporation.
Dolby Cinema® is a registered trademark of Dolby Laboratories.
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