A young man finds a back door into a military central computer in which reality is confused with game-playing, possibly starting World War III.

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Nominated for 3 Oscars. Another 4 wins & 11 nominations. See more awards »
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Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
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Kent Williams ...
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Joe Dorsey ...
Irving Metzman ...
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William Bogert ...
Susan Davis ...
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David Clover ...
Stockman
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Storyline

A young computer whiz kid accidentally connects into a top secret super-computer which has complete control over the U.S. nuclear arsenal. It challenges him to a game between America and Russia, and he innocently starts the countdown to World War 3. Can he convince the computer he wanted to play a game and not the real thing ? Written by Colin Tinto <cst@imdb.com>

Plot Summary | Plot Synopsis

Taglines:

Is it a game, or is it real? See more »

Genres:

Sci-Fi | Thriller

Certificate:

PG | See all certifications »

Parents Guide:

 »
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Details

Official Sites:

Country:

Language:

Release Date:

3 June 1983 (USA)  »

Also Known As:

War Games  »

Box Office

Budget:

$12,000,000 (estimated)

Gross:

$79,568,000 (USA)
 »

Company Credits

Show detailed on  »

Technical Specs

Runtime:

Sound Mix:

(70 mm prints)| (35 mm prints)

Color:

(Metrocolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1
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Did You Know?

Trivia

In the Director's commentary, one of the writers says that the writers got the DEFCON numbers wrong in the movie - in the movie, DEFCON 5 is peace, while DEFCON 1 is war. The person doing the commentary is actually wrong about the movie getting DEFCON wrong. DEFCON 5 is indeed the "peace" rating, while DEFCON 1 is the war rating. See more »

Goofs

When General Beringer asks for two F-16s to be scrambled out of Galena to visually identify the two presumed Soviet backfire bombers the planes actually scrambled are F-15s, not F-16s. See more »

Quotes

Richter: [looking at a report] There's just been a very serious penetration into our WOPR Execution Order file.
Lyle Watson: What the hell's he saying?
Arthur Cabot: Let's have it in English.
General Beringer: I'll give it to you in English - somebody broke into Mr. McKittrick's well-known system and stole the codes that'll launch our missiles. That right, Mr. McKittrick?
John McKittrick: There's no cause for alarm. The system won't accept the launch code unless we're at DEFCON 1. I can have those codes changed in less than an hour.
Lyle Watson: Well, who did this?
John McKittrick: I think the ...
[...]
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Connections

Referenced in Lawnmower Man 2: Beyond Cyberspace (1996) See more »

Soundtracks

History Lesson (Long Line Leading To Man)
Performed by Arthur B. Rubinstein, Cynthia Morrow, Brian Banks and Anthony Marinelli (as The Beepers)
Lyrics by Cynthia Morrow
Music by Arthur B. Rubinstein
Produced by Anthony Marinelli (uncredited)
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Frequently Asked Questions

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User Reviews

 
Nuggets of Truth
9 July 2003 | by (Shermer, Illinois) – See all my reviews

WarGames remains the definitive "hacker" movie, surpassing the raunch of Swordfish and the idio-parody of AntiTrust. Historically-speaking, there are two movies that have shaped public opinion about computers: 2001 and WarGames. With 2001, there is the question of "What happens when an automated computer system makes decisions on its own?" In today's world of automatic Windows updates and random error messages for no reason, it seems very prophetic. WarGames poses the question of "Who uses the computer and what do they do?" The consequences, as one can easily guess, are enormous. Even when hardware ages, the ethics remain.

WarGames isn't perfect. There are plenty of logic problems in the script, but it still presents its topic with a naive fascination. What the writers don't know, they pretend they do. Matthew Broederick is, once again, the nerdy teen with social problems (Ferris Bueller had a different problem, though). Aside from Glory, he won't be able to shake that image even now in his 40s.

I saw this movie when I was eight and had to admit that if someone didn't understand the 80s "Red paranoia", then the whole movie was a misfire. I will admit, it fascinated me with computers and military hardware, changing my life forever in a subtle fashion.

Overall, an interesting movie that becomes more real every year. In today's world of identity theft, cyber-terrorism, MicroSoft, and broadband, some elements are undoubtedly lost on someone who can't remember or understand the Cold War. 3.5 out of 5 stars


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