With the release now only a matter of weeks away it seems that writer director Christopher Nolan considers Oppenheimer a horror film. The director, writer and producer has discussed the significance of J. Robert Oppenheimer and his role in the Manhattan Project, which saw him taking a lead in the research and development of nuclear weapons amid the Holocaust and considers him as “the most important man who ever lived,”.
it’s the tone of the film that has caused much discussion between him and fellow directors who have caught advance previews. “It is an intense experience, because it’s and intense story. I showed it to a filmmaker recently, who said it’s kind of a horror movie,” he said. “I don’t disagree. It’s interesting that you used the word nihilism earlier, because I don’t think I’d quite managed to put my finger on it. But as I started to finish the film, I started to feel this color that’s not in my other films, just darkness. It’s there. The film fights against that.”
Nolan went on to say that he’s seen “some people leave the movie absolutely devastated.” He continued, “They can’t speak. I mean, there’s an element of fear that’s there in the history and there in the underpinnings. But the love of the characters, the love of the relationships, is as strong as I’ve ever done.”
It seems that all of Nolan’s previous work has been leading up to Oppenheimer. It’s a story that “has been with me for years,” he explained, before adding that the film captures the “most dramatic moment in history.” adding, “I was relieved to be finished with it, actually,” he said of how the movie’s process and subject has emotionally affected him. “But I enjoy watching the film tremendously. I think you’ll understand when you see the film. It’s a complicated set of feelings to be entertained by awful things, you know? Which is where the horror dimension comes in.”
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source: wired
