The new full length trailer for Christopher Nolan's Oppenheimer has been released online,
and it gives us a lot of new footage from the Auteur blockbuster filmmaker's latest
feature.
The new scenes focus a lot more on the main story
beats, additional looks at the extended cast, and what looks like a fantastic central performance
from Cillian Murphy's J. Robert Oppenheimer.
It looked incredible on the big screen in front of Guardians Of The Galaxy 3 and I would
definitely recommend trying to catch the trailer in IMAX to get full theatrical experience.
In this video, I'm going to be giving you my reaction
and breakdown for the new trailer, presenting why I think Christopher Nolan's new world
war 2 biopic triller could be his best yet.
The trailer will be linked in the description
of this video if you haven't seen it already.
Before I get into my breakdown of the new trailer though, if you want to keep up to
date on any of my content surrounding Christopher Nolan's
Oppenheimer, then don't forget to support this upload by giving it a like rating, subscribing
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But without further a do, lets dive into the brand new trailer for Christopher Nolan's
Oppenheimer.
So the new trailer puts a bigger focus on the race against time that Cillian Murphy's
character and the other scientists are up against when it comes to developing the atomic
bomb.
This whole story spans 45 years and is focussed
on the telling of Oppenheimer's life by Kai Bird and Martin J Sherwin in their book, American
Prometheus.
The new trailer highlights a lot of the main tension filled moments that
take place before, during and after the trinity test, which is of course the first testing
of the atomic bomb.
The trailer begins with Cillian's Oppenheimer talking about there
being a national emergency, and we see shots and flashes from that very anticipated trinity
test scene, where the bomb is let loose.
It's only a small segment, because Nolan is of course
saving his grandest scene for when people actually go and see the film in theatres,
but we do get a look at Cillian putting on his googles so
that he doesn't get blinded by the flash and also a quick look at Josh Peck's character,
who is Kenneth Bainbridge letting the rest of the scientists know that the detonators
have been charged.
We see flashes of reactions and the explosion and then we cut to the meat of the new trailer,
which begins with that now iconic shot of Cillian's Oppenheimer walking past the
photographers in IMAX Black and White film.
Starting with the black and white footage, like with the previous trailers, we only get
a few shots in that format, but it pretty much confirms
my and many others prediction that this segment of the film will be set after the trinity
test and intercut throughout, and it mostly depicts the trials of Oppenheimer, where his
security clerance was revoked and he was questioned
surrounding his ties to communism.
Now while many people didn't fully know whether he was a communist or not, the book that this
movie is based on, makes it clear that while Oppenheimer
had many friends and loved ones who were connected to communism, and while he agreed with some
notions that they stood for, it was likely that he
wasn't a communist and that he was mainly present with those who were so that he could
help aids like in the spanish war and because he was totally against the Nazis.
At the time there was a rise of the party and the Soviets needed
help against the Germans, so the suspition was that he and maybe others were feeding
information to the russians to help their bomb program.
There's loads of different angles to these events though both the goverment and the FBI
too and the black and white footage just really does a good job of setting up the tension
and really conveying the anxiety that Oppenheimer
must have felt during that period.
We also get a new look at Robert Downey Jr during what looks to be a meeting of the Atomic
Energy Commision, which Oppenheimer led, and he tells
the scientist that the president needs to know what's next, suggesting that a big part
of that black and white sequence is going focus on
the threat of a nuclear arms race after those intitial explosions in Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
One thing I notcied about the way the trailer was structured was that the first 2 minutes
really focus on the idea that they are saving the world, that this the most important mission
in history with basically a typical american attitude towards it, and then that race against
the Nazis angle seems to be subverted by what comes in the final minute.
I'm not going the ruin the main twist surrounding the nazis for people who dont know this story,
but the revelation surrounding their bomb program and also the
surrendering of Japan is definitely something that makes the decisions made by Oppenheimer
and the other scientists all that more intriguing.
It's a twisty moment that is fully hinted at in this new trailer and on top of this,
I expect there to be a lot of symbolism, connections and thematic resonance to the fears of the
modern world surrounding the threat of a future nuclear
war.
While that was what we saw in the black and white footage, much of it however, is focussed
on the colour sequences and in particular, the before and during of the atomic bomb development.
We get a scene between Oppie and Matt Damon's Leslie Groves discussing whether the Germans
have a year or an 18 month head start in the race to build the Atomic Bomb.
Oppenheimer does also say to him later in the footage that there's
a Near Zero chance that the bomb's detonation could destroy the world, and when Groves seems
quited shocked by the chance that it could happen,
Oppie says, "What do you want from Theory alone?".
So just like in the book you get this sense that they are all excited to be apart of this
important project but that there is skepticism towards the implications of the bomb's future.
Theres all these conflictions and even dissapointment surrounding the usage of the bomb in Japan
and you can really see the teases here from certain characters whether it be Groves in
what he said or even that shot of Einstein later on.
Speaking of Einstein in the brief shot we get of him, we see that a sharp breeze blows
off his hat, and based on the IMAX trailer from
last December, this moment is likely one where they talk about the potential risks of the
atomic bomb.
The way it shows him leaving the scene and not looking too excited means that this
might be where he's already realised the destructive potential of the bomb and earlier on in the
story, that a contrast to how others view it,
in that it could save everyone and end the war.
We then transition to a lot of different shots surrounding the whole process that took place
leading up to the trinity test and it includes the construction of the base at Los Alamos,
the recruiting of scientists, then inserting the tamper on the atomic bomb and more dialogue
from the military about how ww2 could be ended and
the soldiers could come home.
When they reconstructed the town they turned this part of Los Alamos into the base where
they would develop the bomb and there's a great moment in the book
where Oppie and Groves are questioned by a boy there about their identities, which they
had to keep hidden for security.
They used different names and there were all the conflictions and
FBI wiretaps that were used to try and prove that Oppenheimer and other scientists were
connected to communism.
There's some incredibly tense moments throughout the manhatton project and
seeing how Nolan has rebuilt The Hill, which was the popular name of the main site, and
how he's showing all of the history and science that happened there, is hopefully going to
be quite extroadinary to watch onscreeen.
We also get some footage of some of the other characters involved like Emily Blunt's Kitty
Oppenheimer, who arrives with her and Robert's son at the ranch, another moment of her asking
her husband if its time, and then one of her trying
to help him during some sort of emotional breakdown.
After flashes of the storm that hit Los Alamos during the day of the trinity test, we
do get another shot of Benny Saftie's Edward Teller and a brief moment between Oppie and
what looks to be Kenneth branaugh's Nels Bohr, and the dialogue in both of these moments
conveys their hopes and fears for the future.
Cillian's Oppenheimer says, "Our work here will ensure a peace mankind has never seen",
and this is followed by images of those at the ranch
celebrating what seems to be the detonation of the bombs, thinking they've ended all wars
and Cillian delivering his famous speech after they succeed.
We're then hit with some twisty dialogue from teller and Bohr, with Teller
saying "until somebody builds a bigger bomb, and Bohr saying "you are the man who gave
them the power to destroy themselves, and the world is
not prepared".
We're further treated to flashes of footage from Florence Pugh's Jean Tatlock looking
psychologically hurt, and then more shots of the trials and that same piece of footage
from the IMAX trailer where Cillian's Oppenheimer looks on as an engulfing flame fills the screen.
So overall, these trailers have been really good as portraying the prime moments from
Oppenheimer's life and I think it's great that Nolan is keeping most of the footage
from after the war secretive, because that is where a lot of the true morals of this
story really come to light.
Coming now to my reaction, I think this looks like it could be one of Christopher Nolan's
very best films and this particular trailer is probabaly one of my favourite of the
director's work since the days of Interstellar, Inception and The Dark Knight Trilogy.
It's tension filled, it stresses on the key thematic impulses that this story is about
and its all guided by a fantastic building score from
Ludwig Gorannson.
We hear similar beats and musical notes from what we heard in the previous trailers, combined
with a Geiger counter sound effect throughout and it promises yet another
brilliant score from the composer.
All of the things that this movie is going to showcase, whether it be the race against
time to develop the bomb or the weight of the issues created afterwards,
is fully on show and I think what's most promising about Nolan's new film is that it seems to
be going back to what we loved so much about his early filmography.
And that is pure chracter work, questioning morality and playing on the subjective vs
the objective.
There's many things in the book that tell us both
other peoples opinions towards the actions of Oppenheimer vs what we actualy know about
him during numerous stages of his life or that Manhaatan Project.
By taking a deep dive into the fascinating mind of the man himself but then
also showing the worlds perception and interogation of what really happened and who he was connected
too, makes this biopic have all the more weight and helps it carry the tension that
Nolan is clearly selling.
We know that his story leads to a lot of grief and humiliation with all the security clearance
trials and the twist in this new footage really does a fantastic job
of touching on all the important moments from his life.
We see the early formation of the team at Los Alamos, the development stages of the
bomb and then the final moments that convey the fall of Oppenheimer in the public eye.
The performance of Cillian through all of this looks to be incredible and the way he's
captured the small mannerisms, the way Oppenehimer speaks
and the way he improvises and inspires scientific ideas, is something that you see in the almost
confident nature he portrays onscreen.
We know that this confidence changes as the story
develops, and we do see that here, but as a whole, it looks like he's done a great job
of bringing this man to life, and I think this could
be an oscar nominated performance for the actor.
Also on the directing front, the way Nolan has chose the merge the subjective and objective
approach through both colour and black and white sequences, seems appropriate for the
narrative involved.
I have done a whole video talking about the black and white scenes and it does look like
the filmmaking is leaning towards using it a very stylistic yet integral way
for this story.
Nolan has been taking a similar approach with his narrative structures for many years, and
I think its always been a strong point within the director's extended filmography.
Also, I once again loved seeing the cinematography from Hoyte Van Hoytema and its just a whole
different experience watching the actual IMAX footage on the big screen.
It looks and sounds incredible and I think in that department, Nolan has again fully
delivered.
Having read most of the American Prometheus book, I have
to say, seeing some of the moments come to life get me really excited to see how he adapts
the whole thing and if you've read the book, you can tell just from this new footage that
Nolan is paying attention to all of the smaller
details and keeping a high level of authenticity surrounding what actually happened during
that period.
It really feels like he combining top teir blockbuster filmmaking, the character
and narrative intricacy of a biopic film, and also the eventual gut punch of a thriller.
In my opinion, it did an excellent job of showcasing
escalating tension, paranoia and getting you ready for a long journey into the mind or
story of one of the most important people who ever lived.
But that was my video discussing my thoughts and breaking down the new official trailer
for Christopher Nolan's Oppenheimer.
If you've already seen the new footage, let me know down below
in the comments section what you thought, alongside whether it get you more excited
for the director's latest film.
I will be continuing my coverage of the film in the buildup to July as
well as posting more uploads for my Road To Oppenheimer series in the coming months too.
So stay tuned for all of my upcoming content and again, let me know what you thought of
the new trailer.
For much more videos and news on Christopher Nolan's Oppenheimer, then subscribe to the
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