09) Dr. Strangelove
Directed by Stanley Kubrick
Released in 1964
There have been a quite a few politically charged comedies over the last few years including In The Loop and Four Lions, but Dr. Strangelove will always be the cream of the crop. It is as clever as any comedy that has ever been committed to celluloid and does a fantastic job of satirising every aspect of the Cold War era.
Dr. Strangelove is, firstly, able to portray the foreboding of the American people during this era as the narrative is set entirely in the hours leading up to an attack on the Soviet Union. An attack which would cause a deadly retaliation resulting in the world's demise. Despite the comic tone of the film, there is an underlying tension as to whether this bomb will reach its target or whether the inadequate people in the war room can stop it.
That, in fact, is another thing that Dr. Strangelove does a wonderful job of capturing. The arrogance of the people in the war room as the minutes countdown to the end of the world is almost painful to watch as they sacrifice saving human lives for debating about transcripts, references and, later, whether they could use it to their advantage. Sure, it's an over-the-top and satirical look inside a war room, but it's one that sums up how many Americans felt during this period; that their government was too busy worrying about winning and looking superior than actually protecting its citizens.
Moreover, the commander who launched the attack gives us a great insight into the paranoia of some people at this moment in history. It's not an attack launched out of retaliation or retribution but one based on a conspiracy theory involving water fluoridation and bodily fluids.
However, it's not only a study of Cold War era life. It's also a superbly written narrative packed full of shock revelations and moments of genuine laugh-out-loud humour. The classic line "Gentlemen, you can't fight in here, this is the war room!" is still one of the best jokes in a comedy film even to this day and even the final scene of a pilot riding the bomb remains as absurdly funny as it was 50 years ago.
Moreover, the entire cast are brilliant. Upon researching the film after watching it, I realised that Peter Sellers actually played three roles in Dr. Strangelove. The fact that I didn't realise because he was so convincing as every character says a lot about Sellers' talent and I believe he was sorely robbed of an Oscar.
I was even going to mention the direction, but let's just leave it at this: It's Stanley Kubrick. You'd be stupid not to expect greatness.
5/5
3 comments:
Besides the opening and closing scenes, it's uber great, especially Sellers. Few bits of the comedy go over my head but that's probably because I didn't realize it was a joke and I took it seriously - that's what's awesome about the film, every different perspective finds a different bit funny. Cream of the crop is indeed the word.
7/10
Sellers is the man! By the closing scenes do you mean the montage of mushroom clouds with Vera Lynn singing or the weird bit with Strangelove? I think I'll probably grow to love that bizzare Strangelove part on a revisit, but I thought the mushroom cloud sequence really summed up that absurdly funny tone the movie had.
I mean the parts after the poster moment really. They should've gone to credits there.
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