IMDb RATING
6.5/10
9.3K
YOUR RATING
This film reenacts the Manhattan Project, the secret WWII project, and the first atomic bombs designed, built, and tested in Los Alamos.This film reenacts the Manhattan Project, the secret WWII project, and the first atomic bombs designed, built, and tested in Los Alamos.This film reenacts the Manhattan Project, the secret WWII project, and the first atomic bombs designed, built, and tested in Los Alamos.
- Awards
- 2 nominations
Allan Corduner
- Franz Goethe
- (as Alan Corduner)
Joe D'Angerio
- Seth Neddermeyer
- (as Joseph D'Angerio)
Jon DeVries
- Johnny Mount
- (as Jon De Vries)
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaThe code names for the weapons - "Fat Man" and "Little Boy" - stem from characters in the written stories of writer Dashiell Hammett. Originally the names "Fat Man" and "Thin Man" were lifted directly from the stories, but the Thin Man weapon design (a Plutonium gun-type weapon) had to be abandoned. The relatively small Uranium gun-type weapon that followed was then named "Little Boy" as a contrast to "Fat Man".
- GoofsIt was actually Seth Neddermeyer who originally conceived the implosion theory, and John von Neumann who refined it to usability.
- Quotes
Richard Schoenfield: Hey Oppenheimer! Oppenheimer! You oughta stop playing God, 'cause you're no good at it, and the position's taken!
- SoundtracksThe Sorcerer's Apprentice
Written by Paul Dukas
Performed by the Wiener Symphoniker (as The Vienna Symphony)
Edouard Van Remoortel, Conductor
Courtesy of The Moss Music Group
By Arrangement with Warner Special Products
Featured review
A Great Movie, Despite What They Say...
Cold War enthusiasts are like Civil War enthusiasts in that they get extremely upset when something is portrayed differently than it actually happened (or differently than they THINK it happened). When you read a negative review of this movie, that is what you are seeing. It may not be 100% factual with the timeline and all of that, but who cares? It is still an excellent movie. The acting is wonderful and the message is even better. Dwight Schultz does an amazing job with his role. The entire cast must have lost 50 lbs each to look like skinny 1940s people. If you haven't seen this film, see it. If you have and you didn't like it, please see it again and look at it with an open heart. It truly questions the moral issues of developing the bomb. It makes you think!
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- How long is Fat Man and Little Boy?Powered by Alexa
Details
Box office
- Budget
- $30,000,000 (estimated)
- Gross US & Canada
- $3,563,162
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $1,476,994
- Oct 22, 1989
- Gross worldwide
- $3,563,162
- Runtime2 hours 7 minutes
- Color
- Aspect ratio
- 2.39 : 1
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![Paul Newman in Fat Man and Little Boy (1989)](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMmUzNjY5NTAtODExZi00MDM5LWE0OGQtOWI0NGI3OTYzNmI3XkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyNjQzNDI3NzY@._V1_QL75_UY133_CR0,0,90,133_.jpg)