Oppenheimer composer reveals which scene was the toughest to score: "I had to go to some difficult places to capture that"
Feb. 9, 2024Exclusive | Ludwig Göransson tells us which scene from Oppenheimer was the most challenge to compose for
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Christopher Nolan’s latest featureOppenheimerhas been deemed by many to be his magnum opus, hence it leading the way at theBAFTAsandOscarswith 13 nominations at both.
The three-hour-long biopic about the father of the atomic bomb is an epic like no other, and so it needed an impressive score to match its sheer ambition. For that, the director turned to composerLudwig Göransson, who he has worked with before onTenet, but this time things were different.
Göransson says this was particularly true for the scene at Fuller Lodge, where Cillian Murphy’s Oppenheimer makes a speech following the successful launch of the bomb. It’s a terrifying moment which many have said is the closestNolan has got to horror, as Oppenheimer has visions of people screaming and the destruction caused by his creation.
For Göransson then, he had to go to “some difficult places” in an attempt to capture what our protagonist is going through in that moment. The composer revealed: “I would say the scene at Fuller Lodge was the toughest. That was the one that took the longest time, I think we finished that piece of music the day before we wrapped the entire film. I tried so many different ideas and concepts, it took a long time to finally get that right and really understand what he’s going through at that moment. It was very challenging. I had to go to some difficult places to try to capture that.”
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From our chat, it becomes clear that working with Nolan is a unique task, which Göransson confirms, saying that it is unlike collaborating with any other filmmaker. But what is also evident is that he loves the partnership, concluding by stating he will never say no to working with the director: “It’s a very collaborative process and he’s with me for the whole ride - his curiosity in music, his interest in it, how important it is to the story, it’s an integral part of the film. It’s just such a pleasure to work with him and I couldn’t be more happy. I’d always say yes to working with him - within a heartbeat for sure. He’s different to others. I don’t work with a lot of people and everyone has their own ways - and Chris definitely has his way of working, but I love the process.”
For the full interview with the composer, listen to the latest episode of theInside Total Film podcast.
As Entertainment Editor at GamesRadar, I oversee all the online content for Total Film and SFX magazine. Previously I’ve worked for the BBC, Zavvi, UNILAD, Yahoo, Digital Spy and more.
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