Threads (1984)

The effects of a nuclear holocaust on the working class city of Sheffield, England and the eventual long-term effects of nuclear war on civilization.

Director:

Mick Jackson

Writer:

Barry Hines (by)

Stars:

Karen Meagher, Reece Dinsdale, David Brierly

4 wins & 4 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Karen Meagher	...	Ruth Beckett
Reece Dinsdale	...	Jimmy Kemp
David Brierly	...	Mr. Kemp (as David Brierley)
Rita May	...	Mrs. Kemp
Nicholas Lane	...	Michael Kemp
Jane Hazlegrove	...	Alison Kemp
Henry Moxon	...	Mr. Beckett
June Broughton	...	Mrs. Beckett
Sylvia Stoker	...	Granny Beckett
Harry Beety	...	Mr. Sutton
Ruth Holden	...	Mrs. Sutton
Ashley Barker	...	Bob
Michael O'Hagan	...	Chief Supt. Hirst
Phil Rose	...	Medical Officer
Steve Halliwell	...	Information Officer

Storyline

In Sheffield, ordinary people from the working class live their lives while the television news report the escalation of the tension between United States of America and Soviet Union after the invasion of Iran by the soviets. People in general do not pay much attention until the day they realize that a nuclear attack may happen and affect the mankind.

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Plot Keywords:

listening to radio | nuclear holocaust | nuclear war | post nuclear | disaster movie | 

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Taglines:

The end of the world as we know it.

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Genres:

Drama | Sci-Fi | War

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Certificate:

TV-MA

Did You Know?

Trivia

Mick Jackson consulted various sources in his research, including the 1983 Science article Nuclear Winter: Global Consequences of Multiple Nuclear Explosions, penned by Carl Sagan and James Pollack. Details of a possible attack scenario and the extent of the damage were derived from Doomsday: A Nuclear Attack on the United Kingdom (1983), while the ineffective post-war plans of the UK government came from Duncan Campbell's 1982 exposé War Plan UK.

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Goofs

Old photos were of San Francisco after the 1906 earthquake.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Narrator: In an urban society, everything connects. Each person's needs are fed by the skills of many others. Our lives are woven together in a fabric. But the connections that make society strong also make it vulnerable.

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Alternate Versions

The 1987 releases on VHS and Betamax replaced Chuck Berry's "Johnny B Goode" with a cover of the song, owing to licensing difficulties.

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Connections

Referenced in New Tricks: The Queen's Speech (2014)

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Soundtracks

Johnny B. Goode
(uncredited)
Written by Chuck Berry
Performed by Chuck Berry

User Reviews

Possibly the grimmest movie ever made

I first saw "Threads" in high school, and saw it again recently as a grown adult. It does make a measure how old you are when viewing this movie; you take the actions on screen more seriously.

"Threads" plays like BBC documentary about a catastrophic nuclear war, interjecting live scenes with a bland monologue and various statistics, although one wonders what audience would be viewing this documentary.

Since it does play like a documentary, it feels no need to either overplay events or sugarcoat things for our sensibilities. There's no speeches or heroic actions, everything occurs as it happens, no matter how horrifying.

The gore is moderate (it was a TV movie after all) but is unsettling because it's taken to be real. Throughout you look for some hopeful thought to intrude, even comic relief, but "Threads" stares you down, making you watch the horror and woe to the bitter end. There is no hope or salvation, only despair.

It's worth seeing a movie like this as a reminder of the horrors of nuclear war; the threat of a mututal destruction by superpowers seems to be fast fading, but there's always the possibility of terrorists or new enemies.

"Threads" is to nuclear war what "Saving Private Ryan" is to war movies, a landmark film that delivers a strong political message without ever really mentioning it.

Details

Country:

UK Australia USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

23 September 1984 (UK)

Also Known As:

Threads

Filming Locations:

Buxton, Derbyshire, England, UK

Box Office

Budget:

GBP400,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), Nine Network Australia, Western-World Television Inc.

Technical Specs

Runtime:

112 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1