The End of All Things.

Rating: 10/10 (15 January 2009)

For Stanley Kubrick, perhaps it was better to laugh at the problems of the world than to dread them. That certainly was the case here as Kubrick adapted Peter George's nuclear war novel Red Alert. However, Kubrick was wise enough to take this rather serious subject and force it under some very funny situations that for a minute take you away from the actual danger of the realities of nuclear war.
From a cinematic point of view, this is just about perfect. The acting is spot-on, from George C. Scott's right-wing, hawk Gen. Turgidson, to Sterling Hayden's mad-cap General Ripper, to Peter Sellers' triple performance as Captain Mandrake, President Muffley, and Dr. Strangelove. Sellers, in particular gives one of the greatest performances in film as he flawlessly transits from character to character and is so believable as an uptight, downright British officer, a neurotic and plain American president, and a creepy yet brilliant former Nazi scientist. Nearly every line is memorable and perfectly captures an era where paranoid reigned supreme and you were instructed to trust no one.
As for Stanley Kubrick, he is obviously poking fun at the sheer lunacy of this situation, yet he shows some deft seriousness as well. Sure, there is a better way to handle this, but there is no wrong in trying to save your own skin. Take it as you will, but there is no doubt that Kubrick has created one of the most inventive, memorable, and timeless films in American cinema. No matter what the state of world affairs is, Dr. Strangelove will always be significant.