Fail Safe (2000) (TV)

Director:

Stephen Frears

Writers (WGA):

Eugene Burdick (novel) and
Harvey Wheeler (novel) ...

Release Date:

9 April 2000 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Thriller

Plot:

Cold War tensions climb to a fever pitch when a U.S. bomber is accidentally ordered to drop a nuclear warhead on Moscow. |

Plot Keywords:

Airforce | Cold War | Live Television | Moral Dilemma | Nuclear Holocaust

Awards:

Nominated for Golden Globe. Another 3 wins & 6 nominations

Cast

Walter Cronkite	...	Himself - Host
Richard Dreyfuss	...	President
Noah Wyle	...	Buck
Brian Dennehy	...	Gen. Bogan
Sam Elliott	...	Congressman Raskob
James Cromwell	...	Gordon Knapp
John Diehl	...	Col. Cascio
Hank Azaria	...	Prof. Groeteschele
Norman Lloyd	...	Defense Secretary Swenson
Bill Smitrovich	...	Gen. Stark (as William Smitrovich)
Don Cheadle	...	Lt. Jimmy Pierce
George Clooney	...	Col. Jack Grady
Harvey Keitel	...	Brig. Gen. Warren Black
Doris Belack	...	Mrs. Johnson
Grant Heslov	...	Jimmy

Runtime:

86 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Certification:

UK:PG | Iceland:12 | Singapore:PG | Germany:12 | Netherlands:AL | Spain:13 | Finland:K-10

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Maysville Pictures

Trivia:

The movie was performed on live television in black and white and required two sound stages on the Warner Brothers studio lot. Harvey Keitel had to run between the two stages for some of his scenes.

Quotes:

Tommy Grady, Col. Grady's Son: Dad! How long is this one gonna be?
Col. Jack Grady, Command Pilot Group 6: Shouldn't be too late.
Tommy Grady, Col. Grady's Son: Are you sure?
Col. Jack Grady, Command Pilot Group 6: I'm positive.
Tommy Grady, Col. Grady's Son: Only fools are positive.
Col. Jack Grady, Command Pilot Group 6: Are you sure?
Tommy Grady, Col. Grady's Son: I'm positive.

Movie Connections:

Featured in The Man Who Shot Chinatown: The Life and Work of John A. Alonzo (2007)

The Fail Safe 2000 version does not match the 1964 masterpiece's acting or drama

The Fail Safe 2000 version simply does not match the 1964 film masterpiece's acting or drama.

I'm an USAF veteran who worked with the real Fail Safe system (not the correct name by the way) and the 1964 version rang all too true to me.

Henry Fonda's acting was right on target, so to speak, and brought back some memories of a very tense time in world history.

The 2000 version just seemed like a half-hearted remake without the compelling drama and performances of the 1964 original film.

Food for thought: The USAF command and control authority kept the largest arsenal of weapons in the history of mankind under perfect control for decades--without a glitch--until it was no longer needed after the Soviet Union's collapse. The movie dramatized the effects of accidental --or deliberate--use of nuclear weapons which is commendable. It is not a topic to be taken lightly.