Oppenheimer - 4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray + Digital [4K UHD]

We watched this film 3 x in IMAX. We don’t go to the theater twice to see a movie. If we liked it, we wait for streaming. Or even buy the dvd.But watching Oppenheimer in the theater was an EXPERIENCE. Excuse the pun but we were blown away. We pre-ordered this and like kids at Christmas we could hardly wait for its release.And what a dvd it is! There are two discs. The second one is 3 hours of Special Features covering everything they did in making the film. It’s as enthralling as the film!The dvd comes in various formats so you can get a bigger bang (there’s that pun again) for the buck if you have a more sophisticated system.We bought this film on VOD and streaming. Since the end of July until now, in February, we have watched Oppenheimer 6 times. It’s never old. We can quote a bunch of dialogue by heart. Every time we see something new, peel another layer off the story, realize why every element in the film is garnering truckloads of awards.Not just the best film of 2023, but one for the ages. The mega cast is outstanding. Cillian Murphy embodies the man. Nolan’s direction, as usual, is impeccable. The cinematography is extraordinary and the score, that SCORE! is as profound as the screenplay. (We also bought the soundtrack.)Nuclear proliferation, Oppenheimers greatest fear, is as frightening now as it was then. Today we have Putin threatening to use “limited nuclear weapons” against Ukraine and negotiating with North Korea to get military materiel in exchange for nuclear secrets. And Iran is fast approaching nuclear capability. I think this is why audiences are so shaken after watching it.I hope the film is re-released in IMAX after awards season ends. Predictions are that it will win everything.When asked if he was surprised at the great success of his film Nolan said, “Audiences want something new, something different to watch in the theater. Imagine! A 3-hour R-rated movie about quantum physics making a billion dollars!”The now iconic scene between Neils Bohr and young Oppenheimer: “Algebra is like sheet music. It’s not can you read the music, it’s can you HEAR the music. Can you hear the music, Robert?” “Yes. Yes I can.” And that’s the scene that tells the story.If you’ve seen the film in the theater you don’t need my recommendation. If you haven’t seen it, then you’re in for an amazing head trip.

First up, I'll say that I loved the movie, in that I have always been interested in atomic bomb history and have read many books on Oppenheimer, including "American Prometheus" on which the movie was based. The movie tells much of Oppenheimer's life and blends the story of Oppenheimer with that of Lewis Strauss (superbly played by Robert Downey, Jr.). The downsides of the movie are that there are a lot of characters introduced and also the storytelling sometimes jumps around - These two reasons are why you might want to see the movie more than once and better yet (in my opinion) read "American Prometheus" or Ray Monks' book on Oppenheimer.The movie definitely was one to see in a theatre with grand New Mexico vistas and impressive pyrotechnics, but transferred well to my 55-inch TV. It is a good DVD release and the colors and resolution on the 4K version (along with standard Blu-Ray) were excellent, along the sound and music.The DVD set comes with a collection of trailers, a feature on the film's IMAX filming, a panel interview with director Nolan, Kai Bird (the surviving author of "American Prometheus" ), the current director at Los Alamos, and two scientists. It also comes with a good documentary about Oppenheimer, including views of nuclear weapons policy after the war - really the heart of the movie, I think . Nolan tells us in the panel interview that the film was made to remind us that nuclear weapons still are very much with us and a threat as Oppenheimer feared. The documentary was quite good and I am guessing (didn't time it) is about 90 minutes long.If you are not that familiar with who Oppenheimer was, I would definitely recommend seeing the documentary that comes with the set before watching the movie.A very good set to have for home viewing (comes with a code for digital viewing).The only complaint I had with the set is that it did not have commentary tracks - I would have liked to hear from Nolan and the cast, along with another track by a couple of historians who knew Oppenheimer and his time.Highly recommended!!