Was Barbenheimer Worth It? [OPINION]

I committed to the "Barbenheimer" double feature, so you don't have to...unless you REALLY want to.

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On Saturday I decided to make a whole day of seeing the two biggest movies of the year; Oppenheimer and Barbie. I wasn't the only one who did this! It actually became a huge trend on social media!

Here's what my full day at the movies looked like:

Reminder this was a Saturday so I had the whole day to do this.

10:30 AM ~ Oppenheimer

1:50 PM ~ Exit Oppenheimer and contemplate my existence.

1:51 PM ~ Snag myself some lunch.

3:10 PM ~ Barbie

5:30 PM ~ Go home and think about how everyone looks good in pink.

Oppenheimer

I have been a fan of Christopher Nolan as a director since seeing his Batman movies. That's what really got me to fall in and check out some of his other works. This movie based on the life of the father of the atomic bomb, J. Robert Oppenheimer.

It stars Matt Damon, Florence Pugh, Emily Blunt, and Cillian Murphy as the title character of Oppenheimer. These performances were stellar, and I would've watched these actors perform in any movie together.

While I overall enjoyed this movie, there were just a few criticisms I had about the flick...

Do I wish that the female characters were more fleshed out? Of course! 

Do I think this movie needed three hours to tell the story it was trying to tell? No way!

Was I sitting on the edge of my seat during the scene where they tested out the bomb? Heck yeah, I was!

Overall, I think this might be Nolan's most ambitious project yet. It's a spectacle that NEEDS to be seen in theaters.

Barbie

I'm going to shoot straight with you, this was the movie I was most excited to see. As a young woman myself, I remember so clearly playing with Barbie dolls and watching all of the Barbie movies. I grew up on Barbie.

Add in a wonderfully talented director like Greta Gerwig, A-list actors like Margot Robbie, Ryan Gosling, & America Ferrera, and some incredible songs then you've got the flick of the summer.

So, I went in ready to like it already...

And I loved it!

It was hilarious, emotional, and just so FUN.

Tips If You Want To Do Barbenheimer

"Barbenheimer" sort of blew up on social media prior to the release of these films. They shared the very same worldwide release date of July 21st, 2023. So, people started joking around about going to see it on the day and making it a double feature.

Due to the films being polar opposites, people started making video edits and memes combining these two distinctive movies in hilarious ways. Thus, Barbenheimer was born.

There are a few things to keep in mind if you plan to commit to seeing both of these in one day...

• Dress Comfy
  • While many modern movie theaters have those reclining and heated seats, it never hurts to dress to impress...absolutely no one. I wore sweatpants and a hoodie. This is the perfect uniform for someone who is about to spend about 5+ hours decaying in a movie theater. Plus, it gets chilly...
• Be a Rewards Member
  • Seeing two movies can be expensive. Throw in food to this equation and it can get a bit pricey. I'm a rewards member of my local movie theater so these purchases got me a HUGE amount of points that I can use towards snacks and future movie visits.
• Small Drinks
  • Oppenheimer is three hours and Barbie is just under two hours, so over the course of your time at the theater you'll have to use the bathroom. I went for the small drink during my movies so I didn't have to get up and pee every five minutes.
• Stretch
  • You are going to be there for a LONG time. In between movies, make sure to get up and walk around if you didn't already get up to go to the bathroom.
• Plan For Food In Between
  • I planned to stay in the theater between shows and grab something from their little restaurant. I know plenty of people who planned to go for brunch or dinner in between shows. Just make sure you calculate eating a meal during your day otherwise you'll end up in a popcorn coma.

Overall, I had fun seeing both movies on the same day. This took up my whole entire Saturday, so maybe the next time I do a double feature, I'll go for some shorter films.