It’s been eight months since Oppenheimer, the Oscar-winning movie released worldwide and made many new records, broke many. Christopher Nolan, Cillian Murphy, and Robert Downey Jr. all got their first Academy Awards with the movie.
And, now, after winning everything, Oppenheimer, the film that reflects the creator of the nuclear bomb that destroyed two towns 79 years ago, has been released in Japan.
Oppenheimer Now Available to Watch in Japan
Cillian Murphy in Oppenheimer (2023). Image Credit: Universal Pictures
Oppenheimer debuted eight months ago but could not get a release slot in the country where two nuclear bombs killed thousands of civilians nearly eight decades ago. The biopic on J. Robert Oppenheimer, popularly known as the father of the atomic bomb finally has been released in Japan.
As the global release date of the movie was just days before the anniversary of the 1945 atomic bombings in Hiroshima and Nagasaki — on Aug. 6 and Aug. 9, respectively, screening of the film in Japan was initially postponed.
Distribution company Bitters End in December: “We decided to release this film in Japan after much debate and deliberation, as the themes covered in this film are ones that hold a very significant and special meaning for us as Japanese people.” (Via Reuters)
On Aug. 6 1945 during World War Two, The United States dropped a nuclear bomb on Hiroshima killing thousands instantly and about 140,000 by the end of the year. Another bomb was dropped by the country on Nagasaki three days later, which killed more than 73,000 people. Japan surrendered on Aug. 15.
The film, rather than focusing on the aftermath of the bombing, depicts the life and internal conflicts of J. Robert Oppenheimer as a person. Critics of the film also argued that the film does not show the harm caused by the bombs. Christopher Nolan‘s film won seven Oscars, including best picture.
How Moviegoers React to Oppenheimer‘s Theatrical Release in Japan?
Robert Downey Jr. and Cillian Murphy in Oppenheimer (2023). Image Credit: Melinda Sue Gordon/Universal Pictures
We understand. It’s tough for a nation to watch a movie that talks about a person who is called the father of the nuclear bomb that destroyed two towns during World War II.
People took to X and shared what Japanese people must have gone through watching this blockbuster.
It's a horror movie there
— ©️ (@V1N1JR) March 29, 2024
I translated the poster and it says "This man has changed the world"
Seems weird for a Japanese audience
— Greep (@GreepTheSheep) March 29, 2024
Weren't they the first to watch it in live 8D?
— Johns (@JohnyBravo183) March 29, 2024
Welp, hope it’s not a bomb over there.
— Bacon 🚀🔋 (@Smoothbaecon) March 29, 2024
this will be a difficult watch for the Japanese people
— ghost. (@uncensordghost) March 29, 2024
propaganda movie
— Reiki (@aet3rno) March 29, 2024
Memories they can't avoid
— mimicracy (@mimicracyy) March 29, 2024
Former Hiroshima mayor Takashi Hiraoka said the “horror of nuclear weapons was not sufficiently depicted,” suggesting Oppenheimer was “made in a way to validate the conclusion that the atomic bomb was used to save the lives of Americans.”
Oppenheimer became the biggest box office earner to win Best Picture at the Oscars In two decades, grossing $964 million at the time of writing this article.
