Hilarious and relevant

Rating: 9/10 (30 May 2006)

It is 1964, the time at which the Cold War has escalated to its peak. Fear of an attack by nuclear weapons against the United States was at an all-time high. This is where the movie Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb begins. A paranoid general, Jack D. Ripper, has launched an all-out nuclear attack with each of the 34 planes from his Burpleson Air Force Base carrying on average a 40-megaton bomb. His reasoning behind this attack? "The preservation of our precious bodily fluids." Word of this attack gets to the President of the United States and his top military advisors, who immediately begins trying to convince the drunk Russian Premier over the phone that the attack would be stopped as soon as possible. However, the attack would be nearly impossible to stop because General Ripper is the only person who could and he wouldn't do it. Another problem was that if the U.S. bombed Russia, the Russians would set off the "Doomsday Device," a weapon that if set off would destroy all of humanity.
The movie portrays what could have happened in a warped parallel universe if there were an actual nuclear attack on the world. However, the film approaches this topic in a very satirical manner, addressing the idea of a nuclear attack as completely ridiculous. However, it was very important at the time because it allowed Americans to laugh at the Cold War even though it was staring them right in the face.
Dr. Strangelove is considered one of the best movies of all time by critics and common people alike because there has been no other film like it. Stanley Kubrick is one of the most well-known directors ever and this could be his most well-known and highly praised film. The performances in the movie are all very memorable, including Peter Sellers in three different roles. What is best about this movie, though, is that it is simply hilarious. Throughout the movie there are many laugh-out-loud moments, even at very somber things like the aftermath of a nuclear holocaust, as described by the title character played by Sellers. Dr. Strangelove is a classic dark comedy that comically portrays the Cold War and at the same time gives us an in-depth look at the paranoia and fear associated with the time period.