When the 2024 Academy Awards nominations came out last January, it was no surprise that Oppenheimer racked up the most noms of the year. The epic Christopher Nolan movie—a.k.a. one half of Barbenheimer—has been a frontrunner for the Oscars since it made its debut in theaters on July 21, 2023, with countless film fanatics heading to theaters in droves to see the nearly three-hour biopic of physicist J. Robert Oppenheimer, father of the atomic bomb (played by Cillian Murphy). In that (admittedly vast) runtime, Nolan tells the story of Oppenheimer's life from his early days as a renowned scientist, to his complicated love life (featuring supporting performances from Emily Blunt and Florence Pugh), to his leadership of the Manhattan Project during World War II, to his public downfall in the years after the war, due to a private government hearing on his alleged communist ties spearheaded by Lewis L. Strauss (Robert Downey, Jr.).
As shown by the many awards Oppenheimer has racked up this season, from the Golden Globes to countless critics' organizations, the film stands tall as one of the best drama movies of 2023. Murphy and Downey give career-best work in the film, with the former transforming over the course of the movie from a theoretical thinker on science and faith to a disillusioned man who has been forced to face the consequences of his involvement in the dawn of the nuclear arms race. If that subject doesn't sound like it would birth an entertaining story, then you're underestimating Nolan's ability to imbue even a closed-door legal hearing with impressive dramatic stakes. Also, the Trinity Test detonation sequence is a must-watch for anyone looking for a scene that will literally take their breath away.
Luckily, the film arrived on streaming a good month before the Oscars (which is more than we can say for late-to-streamer films like Poor Things and Anatomy of a Fall).
How to Watch 'Oppenheimer'
Oppenheimer is currently available to stream on Peacock, after arriving on the platform on February 16. Though the NBC-owned streamer does offer a free tier, viewers will have to subscribe to one of the platforms paid tiers to watch the film. Peacock costs $5.99/month with ads or $11.99/month add-free. In addition, Oppenheimer is also available to rent or purchase digitally on platforms including Prime Video, Apple TV, Vudu, and more.
For anyone hoping to catch Cillian Murphy's haunted expression on the big screen, Oppenheimer is still showing in limited theaters as of Oscar weekend; check here for Oppenheimer tickets.
