An insane American general orders a bombing attack on the Soviet Union, triggering a path to nuclear holocaust that a war room full of politicians and generals frantically tries to stop.An insane American general orders a bombing attack on the Soviet Union, triggering a path to nuclear holocaust that a war room full of politicians and generals frantically tries to stop.An insane American general orders a bombing attack on the Soviet Union, triggering a path to nuclear holocaust that a war room full of politicians and generals frantically tries to stop.
- Director
- Writers
- Stanley Kubrick(screenplay)
- Terry Southern(screenplay)
- Peter George(screenplay)
- Stars
Top credits
- Director
- Writers
- Stanley Kubrick(screenplay)
- Terry Southern(screenplay)
- Peter George(screenplay)
- Stars
- Nominated for 4 Oscars
- 14 wins & 11 nominations total
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Glenn Beck
- Lt. Kivelas Lt. Kivel
- (as Glen Beck)
- Director
- Writers
- Stanley Kubrick(screenplay)
- Terry Southern(screenplay)
- Peter George(screenplay) (based on the book: "Red Alert" by)
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
- All cast & crew
Director's Trademarks: A Guide to Stanley Kubrick's Films
Director's Trademarks: A Guide to Stanley Kubrick's Films
2001: A Space Odyssey and Eyes Wide Shut are just the beginning of Stanley Kubrick's legacy. Are you up to speed on the film icon's style?
Storyline
Paranoid Brigadier General Jack D. Ripper of Burpelson Air Force Base, 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 all out nuclear war with the Soviets. Against Turgidson's wishes, Muffley brings Soviet Ambassador Alexi de Sadesky into the War Room, and get his boss, Soviet Premier Dimitri Kisov, on the hot line to inform him of what's going on. The Americans in the War Room are dismayed to learn that the Soviets have an as yet unannounced Doomsday Device to detonate if any of their key targets are hit. As Ripper, Mandrake and those in the War Room try and work the situation to their end goal, Major T.J. "King" Kong, one of the B-52 bomber pilots, is working on his own agenda of deploying his bomb where ever he can on enemy soil if he can't make it to his intended target. —Huggo
- Taglines
- The comedy classic from celebrated director STANLEY KUBRICK
- Genres
- Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)
- Rated PG for thematic elements, some violent content, sexual humor and mild language
- Parents guide
Did you know
- TriviaPeter Sellers was paid $1 million, 55% of the film's budget. Stanley Kubrick famously quipped "I got three for the price of six".
- GoofsTowards the end of the film, when Strangelove is fighting with his renegade right hand over control of his wheelchair and punches it several times out of frustration, the Russian Ambassador (Peter Bull) clearly corpses (laughs) at Peter Sellers' performance and then quickly regains his composure.
- Quotes
President Merkin Muffley: Gentlemen, you can't fight in here! This is the War Room.
- Crazy creditsThe 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.
- Alternate versionsThe US version opens with the following text being displayed before the Columbia lady appears: "It is the stated position of the U.S. Air Force that their safeguards would prevent the occurence of such events as are depicted in this film. Furthermore, it should be noted that none of the characters portrayed in this film are meant to represent any real persons living or dead."
- ConnectionsEdited into Hai-Kubrick (1999)
- SoundtracksTry a Little Tenderness
(1932) (uncredited)
Music by Harry M. Woods, Reginald Connelly, and Jimmy Campbell
Arranged by Laurie Johnson
Performed by Studio Orchestra during the opening credits
Top review
Going Toe to Toe with the 'Rooskies'
As a film Dr. Strangelove was so well received that a more serious film on the same topic, Failsafe, failed to find an audience. Yet Strangelove made you think as well as entertain which is the ultimate object of any great work of cinema.
General Jack D. Ripper has sent out the Strategic Air Command bombers and locked down Burpelson Air Force Base so that higher ups can't interfere. He's struck back at the dirty Communists for pushing fluoridation of the water supply which he feels has interfered with his bodily functions.
Ripper might want to have checked with the Air Force Chief of Staff, General Buck Turgidson who when we meet him seems to have all his bodily functions working just fine. A second opinion on Ripper's lack of bodily functions might have revised his reason on why his particular functions weren't doing well.
Of course his actions have created a crisis and President Muffley of the United States is busy trying to talk to Premier Kissoff of the USSR to prevent a nuclear war. That is in case those SAC bombers can't be recalled. One of the bombers commanded by Major Kong is anxious to do battle with the 'Rooskies'.
Director Stanley Kubrick went poaching on the black comedy normally that would be the province of Billy Wilder. But even Wilder in his wildest dreams never used those wonderful Dickensian names for his characters that Kubrick is so delighting in. My favorite however is the part played by Keenan Wynn as the army colonel commanding the tactical force that liberates Burpelson, Colonel Bat Guano.
Jack D. Ripper is played by Sterling Hayden a man consumed by his lack of bodily functions. This is a takeoff on Army General Edwin Walker who commanded US troops in Germany and was relieved when it was discovered he was indoctrinating his troops with John Birch Society propaganda which included their fears about fluoridation of water. Curiously enough that cause was actually taken up by other than fanatic right-wingers, people like Ralph Nader. Could Ripper have been right after all?
George C. Scott is cigar chomping, bodily functioning spoof of legendary SAC commander Curtis LeMay. He's having quite the difficult time in deciding just who to root for in this crisis.
Peter Sellers got an Oscar nomination for playing three different characters in Dr. Strangelove. Sellers is President Muttley, Colonel Mandrake of the RAF an exchange officer serving under Sterling Hayden and the crazed former Nazi nuclear scientist Dr. Strangelove. Watching the film, it's almost hard to believe this is the same man using three different voices and appearances that makeup alone could not explain. Sellers lost to his fellow British player Rex Harrison for My Fair Lady.
In fact Dr. Strangelove also lost as Best Picture to My Fair Lady. Of course George Bernard Shaw never put his legendary wit to the issue of mutual nuclear annihilation. Neither did Billy Wilder, but I have a feeling those two talents together couldn't have done any better than Stanley Kubrick.
The image that stays in your mind from the film I guarantee will be Slim Pickens as Major Kong riding that hydrogen bomb down to its 'Rooskie' target like a bucking bronco.
Hopefully we won't meet Major Kong again, who knows where and who knows when.
General Jack D. Ripper has sent out the Strategic Air Command bombers and locked down Burpelson Air Force Base so that higher ups can't interfere. He's struck back at the dirty Communists for pushing fluoridation of the water supply which he feels has interfered with his bodily functions.
Ripper might want to have checked with the Air Force Chief of Staff, General Buck Turgidson who when we meet him seems to have all his bodily functions working just fine. A second opinion on Ripper's lack of bodily functions might have revised his reason on why his particular functions weren't doing well.
Of course his actions have created a crisis and President Muffley of the United States is busy trying to talk to Premier Kissoff of the USSR to prevent a nuclear war. That is in case those SAC bombers can't be recalled. One of the bombers commanded by Major Kong is anxious to do battle with the 'Rooskies'.
Director Stanley Kubrick went poaching on the black comedy normally that would be the province of Billy Wilder. But even Wilder in his wildest dreams never used those wonderful Dickensian names for his characters that Kubrick is so delighting in. My favorite however is the part played by Keenan Wynn as the army colonel commanding the tactical force that liberates Burpelson, Colonel Bat Guano.
Jack D. Ripper is played by Sterling Hayden a man consumed by his lack of bodily functions. This is a takeoff on Army General Edwin Walker who commanded US troops in Germany and was relieved when it was discovered he was indoctrinating his troops with John Birch Society propaganda which included their fears about fluoridation of water. Curiously enough that cause was actually taken up by other than fanatic right-wingers, people like Ralph Nader. Could Ripper have been right after all?
George C. Scott is cigar chomping, bodily functioning spoof of legendary SAC commander Curtis LeMay. He's having quite the difficult time in deciding just who to root for in this crisis.
Peter Sellers got an Oscar nomination for playing three different characters in Dr. Strangelove. Sellers is President Muttley, Colonel Mandrake of the RAF an exchange officer serving under Sterling Hayden and the crazed former Nazi nuclear scientist Dr. Strangelove. Watching the film, it's almost hard to believe this is the same man using three different voices and appearances that makeup alone could not explain. Sellers lost to his fellow British player Rex Harrison for My Fair Lady.
In fact Dr. Strangelove also lost as Best Picture to My Fair Lady. Of course George Bernard Shaw never put his legendary wit to the issue of mutual nuclear annihilation. Neither did Billy Wilder, but I have a feeling those two talents together couldn't have done any better than Stanley Kubrick.
The image that stays in your mind from the film I guarantee will be Slim Pickens as Major Kong riding that hydrogen bomb down to its 'Rooskie' target like a bucking bronco.
Hopefully we won't meet Major Kong again, who knows where and who knows when.
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- bkoganbing
- Apr 6, 2008
Details
- Release date
- Countries of origin
- Official site
- Languages
- Also known as
- Dr. Strangelove
- Filming locations
- Production company
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Budget
- $1,800,000 (estimated)
- Gross US & Canada
- $9,440,272
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $11,751
- Jul 17, 1994
- Gross worldwide
- $9,523,464
- Runtime1 hour 35 minutes
- Color
- Sound mix
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What is the Hindi language plot outline for Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964)?
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