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

PG  |   |  Comedy, War  |  29 January 1964 (USA)
8.5
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Ratings: 8.5/10 from 315,140 users   Metascore: 96/100
Reviews: 819 user | 178 critic | 11 from Metacritic.com

An insane general triggers a path to nuclear holocaust that a war room full of politicians and generals frantically try to stop.

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Title: 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) on IMDb 8.5/10

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Top 250 Movies #49 | Nominated for 4 Oscars. Another 13 wins & 6 nominations. See more awards »

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Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
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Jack Creley ...
Frank Berry ...
Lt. Dietrich
Robert O'Neil ...
Adm. Randolph
Glenn Beck ...
Lt. Kivel (as Glen Beck)
Roy Stephens ...
...
Capt. 'Ace' Owens
Hal Galili ...
Burpelson AFB Defense Team Member
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Storyline

Paranoid Brigadier General Jack D. Ripper of Burpelson Air Force Base, he believing that fluoridation of the American water supply is a Soviet plot to poison the U.S. populace, is able to deploy through a back door mechanism a nuclear attack on the Soviet Union without the knowledge of his superiors, including the Chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Buck Turgidson, and President Merkin Muffley. Only Ripper knows the code to recall the B-52 bombers and he has shut down communication in and out of Burpelson as a measure to protect this attack. Ripper's executive officer, RAF Group Captain Lionel Mandrake (on exchange from Britain), who is being held at Burpelson by Ripper, believes he knows the recall codes if he can only get a message to the outside world. Meanwhile at the Pentagon War Room, key persons including Muffley, Turgidson and nuclear scientist and adviser, a former Nazi named Dr. Strangelove, are discussing measures to stop the attack or mitigate its blow-up into an ... Written by Huggo

Plot Summary | Plot Synopsis

Taglines:

the hot-line suspense comedy

Genres:

Comedy | War

Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG for thematic elements, some violent content, sexual humor and mild language | See all certifications »

Parents Guide:

 »
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Details

Country:

|

Language:

|

Release Date:

29 January 1964 (USA)  »

Also Known As:

A Delicate Balance of Terror  »

Filming Locations:

 »

Box Office

Budget:

$1,800,000 (estimated)
 »

Company Credits

Show detailed on  »

Technical Specs

Runtime:

Sound Mix:

(Westrex Recording System)

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1
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Did You Know?

Trivia

This was the final collaboration between Stanley Kubrick and his producing partner James B. Harris. Harris left to begin his own directing career. Harris was involved in the early development stage of this production. It was during this stage that, according to Harris, Kubrick began to toy with the idea of turning it into a comedy. See more »

Goofs

During the final bombing run, a few times a reflection can be seen, making visible the glass of the airplane from which the background footage was shot. See more »

Quotes

[first lines]
Narrator: For more than a year, ominous rumors had been privately circulating among high-level Western leaders that the Soviet Union had been at work on what was darkly hinted to be the ultimate weapon: a doomsday device. Intelligence sources traced the site of the top secret Russian project to the perpetually fog-shrouded wasteland below the Arctic peaks of the Zhokhov Islands. What they were building or why it should be located in such a remote and desolate place no one could say.
See more »

Crazy Credits

The screenplay title is incorrectly spelled. It reads: 'Base' on the book "Red Alert" by Peter George. This is pointed out on the DVD supplement about the making of the film. See more »

Connections

Referenced in The Curse of the Were-Rabbit (2005) See more »

Soundtracks

When Johnny Comes Marching Home
(1863) (uncredited)
Music by the Union Army bandmaster, Louis Lambert
In the score often during the flight of Major 'King' Kong's aircraft
See more »

Frequently Asked Questions

See more (Spoiler Alert!) »

User Reviews

 
Subtle and Symbolic
11 February 2003 | by (Sumatra) – See all my reviews

Entertainment Weekly called this one of the funniest 100 movies ever made. It also happens to be one of the most disturbing movies made. The humor is right there in your face, however, there is always an underlining political critique under every character, every line, and every government representation. Slim Pickins is the never quit Airman. He is a representative of our entire military system of the time. The president, played beautifully by Peter Sellers, is a demure, calm presence trying to deal with the Russian premiere. His perfect counterpart is a war hungry General, ready to accuse the Russians of any small infraction. This leads to one of the funniest lines in the whole movie. Sellers also plays a British airman who has to deal with the crazed general in the usual polite British manner. Seller's third role is that of the title character, Dr. Strangelove, a former nazi and weapons designer for the Americans. He represents the scientific community of that time period; those who worked tirelessly to build a better bomb. These characters, all of them strongly parodying a cross section of society make for an odd story. The final scene, while played for laughs, is actually a frightening image of a communist future. The final moments are frightening in their truth leading one to put themselves in a position of the characters. Dr. Strangelove is the funniest disturbing film I've ever seen.


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Great movie, but help me understand 2 or 3 things... giorgionov-1
Do you like this movie? and how old are you usama-fazal1
Do you have to be an American to enjoy this movie? mohammad-maseeha
What was Ripper's dysfunction? ebersole
The Dark Knight is a higher rating? Samme7
Ronald Reagan thought there was a real war room internetnicknamehere-178-30027

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