Barbie or Oppenheimer? Oppenheimer or Barbie?
Barbie or Oppenheimer? Oppenheimer or Barbie? I'm writing this column on the eve of a huge dilemma for movie fans. Will it be the film that caused a worldwide shortage of pink paint, starring the rather ace Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling as her boyfriend Ken, directed by the super talented Greta Gerwig? Or will it be one of cinema's biggest champions Christopher Nolan's epic, filmed using IMAX cameras, which has been trailed at the cinema since well before Christmas? A childhood doll or an atomic bomb...it's an agonising decision!
To make things easier, I'll be watching both back-to-back, so you can look forward to my honest take in next week's column. I sincerely hope the buzz around these titles give a much needed shot in the arm for cinemas, as it's still proving tricky to tempt back audiences in the numbers we saw pre-pandemic in 2019. Cineworld has had some well documented financial wobbles globally, and we can only hope things are less choppy for them going forward.
This week, I was truly enchanted by the magical, mesmerising new Disney Pixar offering Elemental. My friend Sayeh describes it as "a beautiful film about family and relationships. Let your mind and imagination go along with the journey of the film. Some clever moments on how they incorporate the elements and animation. Fun for all the family and sentimental". To be honest, I can't really top that description!
I loved the concept of the film, which sees a fiery young woman called Ember strike up an unlikely friendship in Element City with crybaby Wade, It's gentle, it's humane, it's caring, it's subtle...I really, really enjoyed this film. It also looks gorgeous on the big screen, with some stunning sequences. There is the usual depth in the story for us older folk, but the kids who were in our Sunday afternoon screening were kept enraptured throughout, in that clever way that Pixar does so well.
We were also treated to a lovely short film called Carl's Date, starring the old man from Up, as he reluctantly tries to throw himself back into the world of dating, with a little encouragement from his pooch. I'm really pleased this has been kept back for the cinema, rather than simply chucking it onto Disney Plus, as it definitely provides another good reason to go and watch Elemental on the big screen.
Pixar boss explained the rather lacklustre numbers at the US Box Office in a recent interview with Variety magazine. He candidly admitted: "We've trained audiences that these films will be available for you on Disney Plus". Sadly, he's absolutely right. Soul was released at Christmas 2020 straight onto the platform, mid-pandemic, and film fans know it won't be long before Elemental joins the streaming world. I would strongly urge you to have a trip to the cinema to see it though, as you definitely won't be disappointed. It's feeling like a good year so far for films, and I sincerely hope "Barbieheimer" won't disappoint. Come on Barbie, let's go party!
