Dr. Strangelove or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964)
- Starring:
- Peter Sellers, George C. Scott, (more)
- Director(s):
- Stanley Kubrick
- Theatrical MPAA Rating:
- NR
- Category:
- Comedy
Member Rating
My RatingSynopsis of Dr. Strangelove or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb
In 1964, with the Cuban Missile Crisis fresh in viewers' minds, the Cold War at its frostiest, and the hydrogen bomb relatively new and frightening, Stanley Kubrick dared to make a film about what could happen if the wrong person pushed the wrong button -- and played the situation for laughs. Dr. Strangelove's jet-black satire (from a script by director Stanley Kubrick, Peter George, and Terry Southern) and a host of superb comic performances (including three from Peter Sellers) have kept the film fresh and entertaining, even as its issues have become (slightly) less timely. Loaded with thermonuclear weapons, a U.S. bomber piloted by Maj. T.J. "King" Kong (Slim Pickens) is on a routine flight pattern near the Soviet Union when they receive orders to commence Wing Attack Plan R, best summarized by Maj. Kong as "Nuclear combat! Toe to toe with the Russkies!" On the ground at Burpleson Air Force Base, Group Capt. Lionel Mandrake (Peter Sellers) notices nothing on the news about America being at war. Gen. Jack D. Ripper (Sterling Hayden) calmly informs him that he gave the command to attack the Soviet Union because it was high time someone did something about fluoridation, which is sapping Americans' bodily fluids (and apparently has something to do with Ripper's sexual dysfunction). Meanwhile, President Merkin Muffley (Sellers again) meets with his top Pentagon advisors, including super-hawk Gen. Buck Turgidson (George C. Scott), who sees this as an opportunity to do something about Communism in general and Russians in particular. However, the ante is upped considerably when Soviet ambassador de Sadesky (Peter Bull) informs Muffley and his staff of the latest innovation in Soviet weapons technology: a "Doomsday Machine" that will destroy the entire world if the Russians are attacked. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Theatrical Feature Running Time:
- 95 mins
Complete Cast of Dr. Strangelove or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb
- Peter Sellers - Dr. Strangelove
- Peter Sellers - President Merkin Muffley
- George C. Scott - Gen. Buck Turgidson
- Keenan Wynn - Col. Bat Guano
- Peter Bull - Ambassador de Sadesky
- Tracy Reed - Miss Scott
- Frank Berry - Lt. H.R. Dietrich, DSO
- Shane Rimmer - Capt. G.A. "Ace" Owens
- Robert O'Neil - Adm. Randolph
- Laurence Herder - Burpelson Defense Team Member
- Hal Galili - Members of the Defense Team
- Peter Sellers - Group Capt. Lionel Mandrake
- Peter Sellers - Merkin Muffley
- Sterling Hayden - Gen. Jack D. Ripper
- Slim Pickens - Maj. T.J. "King" Kong
- James Earl Jones - Lt. Lothar Zogg
- Jack Creley - Mr. Staines
- Glenn Beck - Lt. W.D. Kivel
- Gordon Tanner - Gen. Faceman
- Roy Stephens - Frank
- John McCarthy - On Defense Team
- Paul Tamarin - Lt. B. Goldberg
- Director(s):
- Stanley Kubrick
- Writer(s):
- Stanley Kubrick, Terry Southern, Peter George
- Producer(s):
- Stanley Kubrick
- Theatrical MPAA Rating:
- NR(War Violence, Adult Humor)
- Categories:
- Comedy
- 1998 - American Film Institute - 100 Greatest American Movies
- 1964 - British Academy of Film and Television Arts - Best Film - Any Source
- 1964 - British Academy of Film and Television Arts - Best British Film
- 1988 - Library of Congress - U.S. National Film Registry
- 1964 - New York Film Critics Circle - Best Director
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