A new behind-the-scenes featurette forOppenheimerexplores how the IMAX format helps to elevateChristopher Nolan’s highly-anticipated biopic. StarringCillian MurphyasJ. Robert Oppenheimer, the movie will retrace the history of the atomic bomb through the eyes of the man who created it.
While a regular cinema screen and televisor work with a 16:9 aspect ratio, IMAX’s exclusive 1.90:1 aspect ratio offers approximately 26% more image. For that reason, Hollywood studios tend to shoot set pieces in IMAX to provide the audience with a more spectacular theatrical experience. However, while IMAX is frequently used as a tool for action,Oppenheimeris a biopicshot entirely in the format. In the new video, Nolan explains this decision by pointing out how “Oppenheimer’s story is one of the biggest stories imaginable.” In addition, the filmmaker underlines that “Our film tries to take you into his experience, and IMAX, for me, is a portal into a level of immersion that you can’t get from other formats.”
Nolan is not the only person to defend the use of IMAX to elevate cinema. In the new featurette, director of photographyHoyte Van Hoytemaalso explains that IMAX can be an “intimate format,” even though people associate the bigger screen with extensive landscapes and overcrowded scenes. For Hoytema,Oppenheimerturns the human face into a landscape that can be explored with IMAX in all its depth and complexity.
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The new video also explains how Nolan and his crew had to create new technology to filmOppenheimer. That’s because the biopic is the first movie ever toshoot sections in IMAX black-and-white analog photography. So, since a black-and-white film didn’t exist in the market, they had to invent it beforeOppenheimerwent into production.
When IsOppenheimerComing to Theaters?
Oppenheimer’s star-studded cast also includesMatt Damon,Emily Blunt,Robert Downey Jr.,Florence PughJack Quaid,Benny Safdie,Rami Malek,Dane DeHaan,Josh Hartnett,Matthew Modine,Kenneth Branagh,David Krumholtz,Michael AngaranoandAlden Ehrenreich. According to Damon, the movieclocks in 3 hours, making it the longest film in Nolan’s prolific career. Considering how complex the real story of the creation of the atomic bomb is, it’s not surprising Nolan needs the extra time for his biopic.
Oppenheimeris based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning bookAmerican Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert OppenheimerbyKai Birdand the lateMartin J. Sherwin. As with his previous films, Nolan writes and directs the biopic.
Oppenheimeris set to be released into theaters on July 21 and willgo up againstBarbie, which premieres on the same day. Check out the new behind-the-scenes video below.
