“Hi. RJ?”
“Hi. It’s so good to meet you.”
“Yeah, you too. Umm, shall we go in?”
“Sure.”
“Great.”
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“Did you do anything this weekend?”
“Not a whole lot. I went to the theater and saw some movies.”
“Oh, which ones?”
“Just one.”
“But you said movies.”
“I know. It’s a little embarrassing, but I watched the same movie twice.”
“Like back to back. You go movie hopping or something?”
“Kinda. Well… no, not really. I’m too much of a rule follower. It wasn’t the same theater. It was the same day, though. But not at the same theater, which I said already.”
“But what movie?”
“Oppenheimer.”
“Like the bomb one?”
“Like the one about making the bomb, yes.”
“And why did you see such a light-hearted movie twice on the same day at two different theaters?”
“Umm, good question. Well, it’s because they’re making this big deal about how they shot Oppenheimer in IMAX cameras and are showing it on actual IMAX film if you’re lucky enough to live near one of 30 places around the world. Like film film. And anyway, the original ticket I bought was for a digital IMAX film which is better than like a normal movie theater but not as good as IMAX film film, which is supposed to be like 18k resolution or something ridiculous that digital still can’t compete with. So I had to buy another ticket for the film film and the only ticket left was in the front row.”
“Wow. You’re like into this, aren’t you?”
“Yeah… I mean I have probably close to a dozen books about or relating to nuclear weapons…. Which, maybe I shouldn’t bring up on a first date… But I guess it’s too late for that. I mean, I think they’re like the dumbest things in the world, but they’re just so interesting. Like, the science and—I’ll just, uh, shut up.”
“Yeah, nukes might be a little strange to lead with. Like coming in too hot, you know?”
“Was that a pun?”
“Unintentional.”
“Oh.”
“But the movie, was it good?”
“The movie? Yeah. I mean, I think I built it up in my head to an impossibly high standard that’s impossible to live up to on a first viewing. But the second time I got to see all the nuances I missed the first time.”
“All the nuance of bombing the Japanese people?”
“Well, you don’t actually see that part, because it’s told through Oppenheimer’s point of view. But maybe we should change the subject.”
“Good idea.”
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“You’re not Japanese, are you?”
“No. My dad’s from Hong Kong.”
“Oh, good.”
“Good?”
“Not like, good good. But like—”
“Oh my god.”
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“So what did you do this weekend?”
“I saw Barbie.”
“Just once?”