On 8 November 1983 a series of accidents nearly unleashed World War III. This film recalls the events that led up to one of the most dangerous moments in the entire history of the 20th Century as limited military intelligence, faulty early warning systems, a belligerent U.S. president, and a NATO war-game (Able Archer 83) convinces the Soviet Union that the US is about to launch a pre-emptive nuclear attack, nearly leading to a Soviet 'counterstrike'. The film attempts to explain the fear and paranoia on both sides leading up to one of the most most dangerous incidents in the final period of the Cold War by using contemporary interviews with high level primary sources spliced between clips of historical news reports and government films.