The other day, I finally went to see the movie “Oppenheimer” that I had been wanting to watch for so long. It’s a Nolan film, and its historical background is fascinating, so I had been eagerly waiting for its release in Japan since last year.
Despite reading biographies and waiting, the release date in Japan was never decided, so around the end of last year, I almost gave up and considered ordering the DVD.
However, I thought this movie had to be watched in the overwhelming presence of an IMAX theater, so I patiently waited, and finally, I got to see it.
The theater I chose was the IMAX Laser GT in Ikebukuro. It’s a place with the highest quality sound and screen. I even became a member of the cinema to make an advance reservation. This might be the first time I put so much effort into securing a seat for a movie.
I made the reservation as soon as the time came, but the good seats sold out in minutes, so I was glad to be a member. By the way, my first experience with a premium seat was fantastic – it was reclining, wide, and just the best.
It made me imagine that this is how comfortable business class on airplanes must be, something I’ve never experienced. From now on, I want to watch all the main movies here.
The movie was three hours long, but the pace was good, and it went by in a flash. As someone who loves history and biographies of scientists, it was better than I expected, but most of all, the atmosphere in the theater during the successful atomic bomb experiment scene was incredible.
This atmosphere could only be felt in a Japanese cinema, and that too, in such a large theater full of Japanese people.
Actually, I was really looking forward to seeing this movie before it was released in Japan, but I thought that the indescribable atmosphere of the theater could only be experienced there.
This is because, as Japanese, from a young age, we learn about the tragedy of the atomic bombs in school, visit the Hiroshima Peace Memorial on school trips, and grow up watching various special programs on TV.
In our children’s literature, we also read ‘Barefoot Gen,’ a manga about a young boy’s experience with the atomic bomb in Hiroshima. As Japanese who grew up in Japan, we receive more education about the tragedy of the atomic bombs than people from any other country.
The moments leading up to and the instant of the atomic bomb experiment’s explosion were truly tense, and the music and tension made it seem like a scene that would remain in cinema history.
However, what impressed me the most was not the tense few seconds leading up to the experiment’s success, nor the incredibly portrayed explosion scene, but rather the scene where the team of scientists and staff joyously celebrated on-site immediately after the success.
The indescribable atmosphere in the packed theater at that moment was unforgettably intense. As Japanese, we can vividly imagine what the success of this experiment, which eventually led to the dropping of atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, would entail.
At that moment, I felt that over 500 spectators in the packed theater were probably sharing a similar emotion, an experience I hadn’t anticipated and found profound.
While the people on screen were celebrating the success of their project, the audience was filled with a completely different emotion, creating an incredibly powerful atmosphere.
I usually dislike crowded places and prefer almost empty theaters, but I’m glad I watched it in a packed, large theater this time. It was an atmosphere and a space I had never experienced before.
Apparently, the delay in the movie’s release in Japan was due to the major distribution companies being hesitant.
However, the movie also expresses the fear of possessing the tremendous power of nuclear energy throughout, making it a must-watch film.
It also connects to the theme of how we will control AI in the future, reminding us of the proposition that once something is known, it cannot be unknown, a thought-provoking movie indeed.
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