Doomsday Gun (1994)

How the brilliant Canadian munitions engineer, Dr. Gerald Bull, agreed to build a super-gun for Saddam Hussein in 1988, when the U.S. cut his funding for the experiment, and how it attracted the attention of several intelligence agencies.

Director:

Robert Young

Writers:

Walter Bernstein, Lionel Chetwynd

Stars:

Frank Langella, Alan Arkin, Kevin Spacey

1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Frank Langella	...	Gerald Bull
Alan Arkin	...	Yossi
Kevin Spacey	...	Price
Michael Kitchen	...	Chris Cowley
Francesca Annis	...	Sophie
Aharon Ipalé	...	Maurouf
Zia Mohyeddin	...	Hashim
Tony Goldwyn	...	Duvall
James Fox	...	Whittington
Rupert Graves	...	Jones
Clive Owen	...	Dov
Murray Melvin	...	Shop Manager
Marianne Denicourt	...	Monique
Alexandra Vandernoot	...	Marie
Roger Hammond	...	Mackler

Storyline

Dr Gerald Bull was a genius at designing and building superguns. (Very large long range guns capable of shooting more than 100 Miles.) When a plan by the CIA to export restricted material using him was exposed, the CIA denied all knowledge and he went to jail. He was later released to help Saddam Hussein build a new supergun capable of firing over 500 miles. Israel, upon learning of the supergun, fears it would be used against themselves.

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Plot Keywords:

supergun | cia | saddam hussein | engineer | gun | 

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Genres:

Action | Drama | History | Thriller

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Certificate:

Unrated

Details

Country:

UK USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

23 July 1994 (USA)

Also Known As:

A szuperágyú

Filming Locations:

Belgium

Company Credits

Production Co:

Griffin Productions, HBO Showcase

Technical Specs

Runtime:

120 min 141 min (DVD)

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Both Frank Langella and Kevin Spacey had played Richard Nixon on film. Langella played Nixon in Frost/Nixon (2008) while Spacey played him in Elvis & Nixon (2016).

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Goofs

Near the end of the film, when Monique hands Gerry his loaf of bread, the reflection of two crew members can be seen in the car window.

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Quotes

Dr. Gerald Bull: We're working for Iraq, gentlemen, not Switzerland. These people won't listen to excuses!

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Connections

References Star Trek (1966)

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Soundtracks

Gimme What I Want
(uncredited)
Written by Nigel Jenkins
KPM Music Ltd

User Reviews

Another good tv movie

Another good example of how a tv movie can, perhaps within bland and low-cost production values, be more interesting and truthful than the standard Hollywood film.

Another respondent has described how well the film captures the creative moment within engineering, and that's all true. I think Langella's performance was also an excellent representation of a buccaneering businessman, drawing about him intelligent people he trusts and inspiring them, although occasionally haranguing them.

Good scenes .. Gerald Bull dining on the grave of a famous German artilleryman. The Israeli spy chief walking morosely around the Baghdad arms fair looking at all the hardware he would one day have to face. The nods and winks of the British establishment as they turn a blind eye to the production of Saddam's supergun.

Yes it clunks here and there. But fine acting and a literate script. More absorbing than most films which cost 10 times as much.

Seven out of ten.