While it’s true that several filmmakers have their movies shown in the IMAX format, it’s Christopher Nolan who is most associated with the large-screen, premium presentation – and that’s because he spends so much time during his production making sure that he’s using IMAX cameras and proper film stock to translate into that format when his movies screen. Nolan has been doing this for years now, and it’s a massive part of the reason why Oppenheimer, his latest movie, exceeded box-office expectations and competed with Barbie for audience eyeballs. And IMAX executive David Keighley told us the Nolan scene that was tested specifically for IMAX in The Prestige.
Christopher Nolan released The Prestige back in 2006, the year after he reinvented the comic-book genre with his grounded and brilliant Batman Begins. See where it ranks on our list of the best Batman movies. And way back then, Nolan was interested in IMAX… but wasn’t sure if he could film with the technology and have it translated properly for theatrical presentation. Apparently Nolan saw his footage for Batman Begins blown up to fit the IMAX format, but knew that he’d have to start filming in IMAX to achieve the best transformation. And that process started on The Prestige.
David and Patricia Keighley have worked at IMAX for the better part of five decades. They both currently hold the distinct title of Chief Quality Officer for IMAX, and it’s literally their job to ensure that IMAX theaters present the best version of a film in their locations. While speaking to CinemaBlend’s ReelBlend podcast about the work they have done with Christopher Nolan over the years, David Keighley went back to a scene in The Prestige as a major first step, saying:
He wanted to know, ‘Okay, if I do IMAX… they've only got X theaters.’ I don't know what we had. Maybe 400 or something. And now we have 1,782 countries. We had much less, but he wanted to make sure that we could, if you shot with IMAX, you could actually convert it into other media like 35mm, and do the release. So when (Christian Bale)'s fingers are cut off in The Prestige… remember that shot? That shot was only shot in IMAX. And then (Nolan) used that to convert it to 35. And that proved that you could use an IMAX element to do a regular release. So then he got really excited.
You can see the moment at the two-minute mark in this clip from The Prestige below:
Did you have any idea that this one shot was filmed in IMAX as a test for Christopher Nolan to see if IMAX could be converted to 35mm film for a wider release? The scene is pivotal to the story in The Prestige, as Christian Bale’s character is explaining to Hugh Jackman how he pulled off his magic trick. (Read our breakdown of The Prestige ending if you forget the details.)
And it worked! Which allowed Nolan to use even more IMAX footage in The Dark Knight, and then just keep refining the process for movies such as Inception, Dunkirk, and Oppenheimer. That immersive IMAX experience is a big reason why tickets to Oppenheimer in that format are tough to come by. Unless you happen to be Quentin Tarantino. Make sure you see Oppenheimer and explore its timeline in a theater, and then hit up our guide to the upcoming 2023 movies to plan your next theater trip.
