Christopher Nolan refuses to re-record dialogue in post

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Louder for the people in the back.

Every time Christopher Nolan releases a new movie, he faces criticism from viewers over the quietness of his characters’ dialogue.

One obvious visual reasons is actors wearing masks, such as Tom Hardy as the vigilante Bane in “The Dark Knight Rises” (2012) and when John David Washington wears an oxygen mask in “Tenet” (2020).

The director’s latest installment “Oppenhiemer,” with the shaking score delivered by Ludwig Göransson’s and the periodic bombardment of noises, is no exception to the complaints.

In a recent interview with Insider, Nolan divulged the artistic choice that makes the dialogue difficult to understand: he doesn’t request actors to come back to do additional dialogue recordings in post-production.

ADR is a commonality in the TV and Movie industry.


Cillian Murphy as J. Robert Oppenheimer, left, and filmmaker Christopher Nolan on the set of "Oppenheimer."
“Oppenheimer” director Christopher Nolan doesn’t request actors to come back to do additional dialogue recordings in post-production.
AP

“I like to use the performance that was given in the moment rather than the actor re-voice it later,” he said. “Which is an artistic choice that some people disagree with, and that’s their right.”

Nolan shoots the raw dialogue in all his movies with loud, gigantic Imax cameras, although he told the outlet the technology is improving.

“There are certain mechanical improvements,” he said. “And actually, Imax is building new cameras right now which are going to be even quieter. But the real breakthrough is in software technology that allows you to filter out the camera noise. That has improved massively in the 15 or so years that I’ve been using these cameras. Which opens up for you to do more intimate scenes that you would not have been able to do in the past.”

Even then, Nolan admitted there are moments where using a 15 perf-70mm camera isn’t practical. He elected not to use the noisy camera when filming the dialogue-heavy Oval Office scene between J. Robert Oppenheimer (Cillian Murphy) and President Truman (Gary Oldman).


Director Christopher Nolan, center, and Cillian Murphy as J. Robert Oppenheimer, right, on the set of "Oppenheimer."
The Imax cameras Nolan uses in all his movies are noisy, making the characters’ dialogue difficult to hear against a loud score and background noise.
AP

Despite some “Oppenheimer” viewers posing issues with Nolan’s sound choices, moviegoers are pouring into theaters to watch the blockbusters.

It’s made more than $400 million worldwide at the box office.

Nolan is already known for raging war with other typical objects on his movie sets.

He told the told the New York Times he arranged his “Oppenheimer” shooting around his star’s hair.

“I did insist on scheduling it around Cillian’s haircut. Because I’m very allergic to wigs in movies. I really wanted the film to not have any obvious artifice when it came to the way characters presented themselves,” he said.


Actress Anne Hathaway and director Christopher Nolan attend "Interstellar" premiere at UME Cinema on November 10, 2014 in Shanghai, China.
Along with Nolan being “allergic” to wigs in movies, Anne Hathaway revealed the successful director “doesn’t allow chairs” on set.
VCG via Getty Images

Murphy, who has worked with the director on a whooping six movies, told Vulture in 2019 he doesn’t “generally do wigs” as an actor.

He continued, “I think they look phony. If I see that a character has to wear a wig, I generally won’t do the part.”

In the “Actors on Actors” 2020 issue for “Variety,” actress Anne Hathaway told her “Les Misérables” co-star Hugh Jackman that Nolan doesn’t allow chairs on set.

“His reasoning is, if you have chairs, people will sit, and if they’re sitting, they’re not working.”

Hathway, who played Catwoman in “The Dark Knight Rises,” said the strange tactic does seem to work.

“[The movie] always arrives at the end under schedule and under budget. I think he’s onto something with the chair thing,” she admitted.

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