DR STRANGELOVE - CINEMA AT ITS BEST
With Philips Open Air cinema screening this 1960s classic thirty five years after its release, a brief review of the movie would be worthwhile. This one I'll analyse more after January 31, 1998.
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Dr Strangelove follows the tale of what happens as a nation (unknowingly and) unwittingly enters a nuclear showdown after a mad general decides that the communists are infiltrating our "bodily fluids" (this whole routine is brilliantly played out) and he must single handedly start the nuclear conflict to once and all destroy the commos. Simply put, Dr Strangelove is the best satire to be put to screen, and some would argue one of the most intelligent comedies ever. |
It contains the typical Kubrick themes of power and sex, although in such a ridiculous form it is comical (the opening 'sex scene' between the plane and the refueller, and ofcourse one of the most classic scenes in film history, the cowboy riding on the nuclear bomb). Forget crash as a statement about man, machinery and sex being linked - this film does so with brilliance while giving us much more. It highlights the stupidity of the extremists in the "communist threat" argument thirty years before it had been fully revealed to us now (ironically, recently we've seen how some of the few times the world came close to a nuclear showdown was with malfunctioning machines). And thankfully, the movie itself is removed enough from Hollywood (Kubrick has always shied away from America) to subvert the cliches of the American films even before they became cliches (that is, the british major being the 'good guy'). In other words, its originality stands the test of time, and its themes are important even though the nuclear threat and communism is dead. There's also some primary linkage to the more overt sexual references made in Full Metal JAcket about military hardware and military types.The film also has a conference room scene in the emergency room that has been a hallmark for similar set lay outs in countless films - and was sent-up in reverence by the genius designers of a Simpson's episode - the set makes the comedy taking place even funnier (classic lines like: "you can't fight in the war room" etc), because in spite of the ridiculousness, there's an underlying truth to its scenario - and the set highlights that.
Rarely does a film work as an intellectual, insightful, comical and artistic endeavour. This one does. It will forever remain the best ever satire and if not the best cinematic comedy ever made, pretty close up there. PS. Peter Sellers does an excellent job, playing three or four roles, including Dr Strangelove (genius would be a term to apply to the acting).
95/100