Dr. Stranglove, or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964) – A deranged Air Force general sends bombers with nuclear weapons into the Soviet Union trying to provoke a war he believes the United States will win in this Cold War satire.
Directed by Stanley Kubrick Starring Peter Sellers, George C. Scott, Slim Pickens, Sterling Hayden, Keenan Wynn
I imagine this movie will seem far fetched to the generations who have grown up after the Cold War. The image of utter insanity when it came to the “Red Menace” and the Russians seems outlandish these days. Our enemies are very different now. While they are violent, they don’t offer a threat of ending life as we know it. As someone who grew up through most of that era, this movie is chilling right along with its comic moments. The tirade by Col. ‘Buck’ Turgidson near the end of the movie about a possible “mineshaft gap” may sound like pure silliness, but there was an ongoing concern about a variety of “gaps”, most especially the missile gap. A gap that likely never existed, except as an election cycle fear tactic.
It’s easy to get caught up in the absurdity of the names (“King” Kong, Jack D. Ripper, “Bat” Guano, Mirkin Muffley, and Dr. Strangelove), or the ridiculous paranoia of the age. But you would be overlooking the very serious foundations of the story itself. The fun, but decidedly lesser “WarGames”, follows in the narrative footsteps of this movie. A story about our over reliance on our technology, and the poor decisions made by people who never take a look around for themselves. The 1980’s movie leaves us with a decidedly more upbeat ending.
Like all great movies, you can enjoy it at many levels. Just for the story, or the story along with the satirical foundation. You can stand in awe of the movie making techniques like the hand held filming of the combat around the airfield. It looks exactly like the film the nation was beginning to see coming out of Viet Nam. The opening and closing sequences are brilliant as well. Each offers a disturbing vision literally underscored with music of warmth and gentility.
Peter Sellers plays three different roles here. The RAF exchange officer, Group Capt. Lionel Mandrake, the Executive Officer to the insane Gen. Jack D. Ripper. The President of the United States, Mirkin Muffley, who may be the only sane person in the movie. And the title character of Dr. Strangelove. The doctor is a refugee from Nazi Germany, like many of the scientists snatched up by both East and West following World War II. His Nazi past is kept just under the surface. It’s a brilliant trio of performances at the very heart of this iconic movie.
The rest of the cast is equally brilliant, from George C. Scott (who couldn’t understand why Kubrick wanted him to overact the role so much until he saw the movie) to the film debut of James Earl Jones (he’s a member of the bomber crew. I almost missed him in his flight helmet)
This movie had real world impact at the time. The U.S. military changed procedures to make sure it could never happen in real life.
Why You Will Like It – The cast, the story, the frightening reality of it and the utter absurdity of it all. It’s a truly brilliant piece of movie making.
Rating – ***** A Must See
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