Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964)

Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964)

6/10

Starring

Peter Sellers

George C. Scott

Sterling Hayden

Keenan Wynn

Slim Pickens

Directed by Stanley Kubrick

Did I enjoy this Stanley Kubrick film? Yes. Is it excitingly funny? Not really. Although it's rated as one of the funniest movies out there, I will say one thing: Kubrick did a good job of making a mockery of the Cold War crisis that was looming at the time of this movie’s release.

Dr. Strangelove is as captivating as the name, especially when you say it in full: Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb. My favorite scenes in this movie were when the commander of the bomber, Major T. J. Kong, was riding the nuclear missile, and the other when Peter Sellers, as Group Captain Lionel Mandrake, was begging for 50 cents and had to ask someone to shoot a Coca-Cola vending machine.

Peter Sellers was actually set to play four roles in the movie, but it was later reduced to three. Slim Pickens played Major T. J. Kong, which was originally meant to be Sellers' role. So, Sellers played:

1. Group Captain Lionel Mandrake (my favorite character of all)
2. President Merkin Muffley, the American President
3. Dr. Strangelove, a wheelchair-bound German nuclear war expert and former Nazi, who has a gloved right hand that is uncontrollable and whose heart is still Nazi.

The plot is about a general who went rogue and decided to kick off nuclear war. He arranged a strike on the Soviet Union and made sure the callback code to end it would not be found.

The US president and his cabinet tried everything they could to get back all 34 planes that were on their way for the strike, but they could only reach 30, and the Soviets shot down 3. However, one plane was still heading toward the target, and there was no way to call it back.

The movie was set to be released around the time of the Kennedy assassination but was pushed back because the producers felt the nation did not need to see a movie like that at that time. There was also a pie fight scene that was cut because of a line that went, "Gentlemen! Our gallant young president has been struck down in his prime!"

Dr. Strangelove, as I said, is a lovable film, and it will keep you glued. But to me, it's a bit overhyped, so I can’t fully say it’s a must-watch. But maybe you should give it a try and let me know your thoughts.