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

Director:

Stanley Kubrick

Writers:

Stanley Kubrick (screenplay) &
Terry Southern (screenplay) ...
(more)

Release Date:

29 January 1964 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | War

Tagline:

the hot-line suspense comedy

Plot:

An insane general starts a process to nuclear holocaust that a war room of politicians and generals frantically try to stop.

Plot Keywords:

General | Bomber | War Room | U.S. President | Doomsday

Awards:

Nominated for 4 Oscars. Another 13 wins & 4 nominations

Cast

Peter Sellers	...	Group Capt. Lionel Mandrake / President Merkin Muffley / Dr. Strangelove
George C. Scott	...	Gen. 'Buck' Turgidson
Sterling Hayden	...	Brig. Gen. Jack Ripper
Keenan Wynn	...	Col. 'Bat' Guano
Slim Pickens	...	Maj. 'King' Kong
Peter Bull	...	Russian Ambassador Alexi de Sadesky
James Earl Jones	...	Lt. Lothar Zogg
Tracy Reed	...	Miss Scott
Jack Creley	...	Mr. Staines
Frank Berry	...	Lt. Dietrich
Robert O'Neil	...	Adm. Randolph
Glenn Beck	...	Lt. Kivel (as Glen Beck)
Roy Stephens	...	Frank
Shane Rimmer	...	Capt. 'Ace' Owens
Hal Galili	...	Burpelson AFB Defense Team Member
Paul Tamarin	...	Lt. Goldberg
Laurence Herder	...	Burpelson AFB Defense Team Member
Gordon Tanner	...	Gen. Faceman
John McCarthy	...	Burpelson AFB Defense Team Member

Directed by
Stanley Kubrick

Writing credits
Stanley Kubrick		(screenplay) &
Terry Southern		(screenplay) &
Peter George		(screenplay)
Peter George		(book "Red Alert")

Produced by
Stanley Kubrick	....	producer
Victor Lyndon	....	associate producer
Leon Minoff	....	executive producer (uncredited)

Original Music by
Laurie Johnson

Cinematography by
Gilbert Taylor		(director of photography)

Film Editing by
Anthony Harvey

Production Design by
Ken Adam

Art Direction by
Peter Murton

Makeup Department
Stuart Freeborn	....	makeup artist (as Stewart Freeborn)
Barbara Ritchie	....	hairdresser

Production Management
Clifton Brandon	....	production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Eric Rattray	....	assistant director

Sound Department
John Aldred	....	dubbing mixer
Richard Bird	....	recordist
John Cox	....	sound supervisor
Leslie Hodgson	....	sound editor

Special Effects by
Wally Veevers	....	special effects
Alan Bryce	....	special effects (uncredited)
Arthur 'Weegee' Fellig	....	special effects advisor (uncredited)
Brian Gamby	....	special effects (uncredited)
Garth Inns	....	special effects (uncredited)
Mike Shaw	....	special effects (uncredited)

Visual Effects by
Vic Margutti	....	travelling matte
Jim Body	....	visual effects camera operator (uncredited)
Bob Cuff	....	matte painter (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department
Bernard Ford	....	camera assistant
Kelvin Pike	....	camera operator
Bob Penn	....	still photographer (uncredited)

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Bridget Sellers	....	wardrobe

Editorial Department
Geoffrey Fry	....	assembly editor
Ray Lovejoy	....	assistant editor

Other crew
Pamela Carlton	....	continuity
John Crewdson	....	aviation advisor (as Capt. John Crewdson)
Pablo Ferro	....	main title design: Ferro, Mohammed & Schwartz, Inc.
Jean Bernard	....	pilot: outside bomber views (uncredited)

Production Companies

• Columbia Pictures Corporation (presents)
• Hawk Films

Distributors

• Columbia Pictures (1964) (USA) (theatrical)
• Columbia Pictures Corporation (1964) (UK) (theatrical)
• Columbia Films (1964) (France) (theatrical)
• Columbia Films (1964) (Belgium) (theatrical)
• Columbia Films (1964) (Finland) (theatrical)
• American Broadcasting Company (ABC) (1968) (USA) (TV) (original airing)
• Criterion Collection, The (1992) (USA) (video) (laserdisc)
• Columbia TriStar (1994) (USA) (video) (laserdisc)
• Columbia TriStar (1997) (USA) (VHS) (widescreen)
• Warner Home Video (1999) (USA) (DVD)
• Warner Home Video (2000) (USA) (DVD)
• Warner Home Video (2001) (USA) (DVD)
• Columbia TriStar Home Video (2004) (USA) (DVD)
• Columbia Film (1964) (Sweden) (theatrical)
• Columbia-Warner Distributors (1974) (Portugal) (theatrical)
• Neue Visionen Filmverleih (2006) (Germany) (theatrical)
• Sony Pictures International (1987) (West Germany) (theatrical)
• Svenska Filminstitutet (SFI) (2001) (Sweden) (theatrical) (re-release)
• Columbia TriStar Home Video (????) (UK) (DVD)
• Columbia TriStar Italia (????) (Italy) (VHS)
• Egmont Entertainment (1999) (2001) (Finland) (DVD) (1-disc editions)
• Mainostelevisio (MTV3) (1990) (1996) (Finland) (TV)
• Nordisk Film (1999) (Sweden) (DVD)
• Nordisk Film (2001) (Sweden) (DVD)
• RCA/Columbia Pictures Home Video (????) (USA) (video) (laserdisc)
• Sony Pictures Home Entertainment Nordic (2005) (Finland) (DVD) (2-disc edition)
• Sony Pictures Home Entertainment (2009) (Germany) (DVD) (Blu-ray)
• Sony Pictures Home Entertainment (2009) (Netherlands) (DVD) (Blu-ray)
• Sony Pictures Home Entertainment (2009) (Sweden) (DVD) (Blu-ray)
• Sony Pictures Home Entertainment (2009) (USA) (DVD) (Blu-ray)
• Universal Pictures Nordic (2005) (Sweden) (DVD)
• Warner Home Video (????) (USA) (VHS)
• Yleisradio (YLE) (2009) (Finland) (TV)

Other Companies

• British Oxygen  the producers gratefully acknowledge the assistance of
• Ferro, Mohammed & Schwartz  main title by
• Institut Geographique National  location filming (uncredited)
• Marconi Wireless Telegraph Company  the producers gratefully acknowledge the assistance of (as Marconi's Wireless Telegraph)
• Post Logic Studios  digital film mastering (uncredited)
• Solartron Electronics  the producers gratefully acknowledge the assistance of
• Telephone  the producers gratefully acknowledge the assistance of (as Telephone Manufacturing)

Also Known As:

"Dr. Strangelove" - Australia (short title), UK (short title), USA (short title)

MPAA:

Rated PG for thematic elements, some violent content, sexual humor and mild language (re-rating) (2004)

Runtime:

95 min

Country:

USA | UK

Language:

English | Russian

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Certification:

Argentina:Atp | Australia:PG | Canada:G (Québec) | Finland:K-16 (1964) | France:U (re-release) | Germany:12 (re-rating) | Hong Kong:IIA | Iceland:Unrated | Ireland:PG | Japan:Unrated | Netherlands:AL (video rating) | New Zealand:PG | Norway:11 | Singapore:PG (DVD rating) | Sweden:11 | UK:PG | USA:Approved (Certificate No. 20469) (original rating) | USA:GP (re-rating) (1970) | USA:PG (re-rating) (2004) | West Germany:16 | Canada:A (Nova Scotia) | Canada:PG (Manitoba/Ontario) (Canadian Home Video rating) | Spain:18 | Portugal:M/12 | South Korea:12 | Brazil:10 | Finland:K-12 (1998) | USA:TV-PG (TV rating)

Filming Locations:

Arctic

Company:

Columbia Pictures Corporation

Trivia:

The ending in the novel was similar to the novel and movie Fail-Safe (1964). Author Peter George detested the conversion of his book to a satire, but wrote a tie-in novelization of the film anyway.

Goofs:

Continuity: In a number of scenes showing the B-52 flying from behind, the plane banks and turns yet none of the control surfaces on the wings move.

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.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Top Gear: Episode #5.2" (2004)

Soundtrack:

Try a Little Tenderness

Still laughing, long past the end credits...

Who'd have thought that Kubrick had such a great sense of humor? I mean, in most of his films, there are snippets of humor, and Barry Lyndon has a definite irony, but I hadn't expected him to be able to direct such a hilarious and thoroughly entertaining comedy. I had known for a while that this was the highest rated Kubrick film here on IMDb, so naturally, I was excited to find out if it was really his best film. Even though I haven't seen Lolita, Spartacus, Eyes Wide Shut or his first few films(the shorts he made before his feature), and even though I thoroughly enjoyed his other films, this very well may be his best film. Made in a period of time where the thought of nuclear war was a terrifying idea, that was believed to be a reasonable fear, the film takes this idea and turns it around, makes us laugh at it. The film was made during the Cold War, which must have taken quite a lot of guts on Kubrick's side... then again, he did start out, intending to make a thriller/suspense film about the subject, but ultimately realized that a comedy with a lighthearted look on the situation would be a better idea. So, he turned the idea of impending doom from nuclear holocaust into a black comedy. Personally, I think he did a damn good job of it. I haven't laughed that hard and for so long at any one time for quite a while... in fact, I might never have. The comedy isn't overplayed, in fact most of it is presented in a dead-pan, matter-of-fact-like type of way... what's even more hilarious is that the better part of it is completely accurate. No dumb stereotypes, no old clichés... just logic and simple, good old-fashioned observation. The plot is excellent, and very well-paced. In my opinion, Kubrick's most well-paced film. The plot takes off almost immediately and moves at a great pace throughout the film. The acting is flawless. Absolutely flawless. Not something completely unusual for a Kubrick film, but still. George C. Scott and Peter Sellers are amazing. Normally, I'm not too fond of Sellers, but here he was brilliant. The characters are well-written, diverse and interesting. The cinematography is great. Just like Kubrick's other films, this one has some very memorable scenes, one of which(the bomb-riding sequence) has been referenced and spoofed a huge number of times... possibly more times than any other sequence in Kubrick's films, which is quite impressive. The dialog is well-written, well-delivered and memorable. Plenty of quotable lines. I can't really say much more about the movie without ruining one or more of the innumerable great jokes... so I'll just suggest you see it. Seriously, if you enjoy Kubrick's sense of humor as seen limited in his other movies, you're going to enjoy this film. Maybe not as much as I did, but you'll most likely laugh. A lot. I recommend this to any fan of Kubrick, black comedies, Peter Sellers or just comedies with a dark basic theme to watch this. I can't praise it enough. See it, unless you are offended by the themes the film presents. You won't regret it. I know I didn't. Not by a long shot. Hilarious film with a provocative plot and basic idea. 10/10