Kubrick's stab at comedy hits the mark most times with superior story telling for the time but the aging is the biggest problem here.

Rating: 7/10 (11 June 2007)

Although it's Kubrick (and I like Kubrick a great deal), 'Dr. Strangelove' left me a little under-whelmed and a little disappointed. I would go so far as to say that the film's main problem is in it's aging as its content and the way in which the film is delivered are fine; in fact, they actually feel ahead of their time.
The film's core subject is the Cold War  this is obvious. The Cold War ran between the end of the second world war (1945) and ended in the early 1990s with the fall of the Soviet Union so between these dates I'm sure this film was at the top of every AFI and BFI list imaginable not to mention people's personal ones as well. I can imagine people watching this film during the Cold War and genuinely being entertained that something so serious can be looked at in such a carefree and laughable way and this is very clever  something only Kubrick and probably no one else could actually pull off. The way in which the Russians are allowed into America's secret den, the way suspicion and humour are connected during the 'he's secretly taking pictures!' gag and throughout as well as the way in which former Nazi accomplices are represented.
The film also uses the technique of revolving around three different stories which is very advanced and adds to the film. These is the base and its fate in which American planes are purposely ordered to attack the USSR; the 'allies' in an underground American bunker dealing with the situation (and getting into some hilarious phone calls with the Russians whilst they're at it); and the lone plane that breaks away from Allied control as it nears its Soviet target.
The first setting and its main characters: Group Captain Mandrake (Sellers) and the aptly named bringer of death General Jack Ripper (Hayden) are absolutely hilarious to watch. Mandrake is English and remains calm in a crisis; only maybe raising his voice when he needs to give a monologue stating how he's taking control  this is counteracted by Ripper's disturbing persona and ideas about how he's going to make the world a better place by, technically, destroying it. He has his own brilliant monologue all about water and an interesting conspiracy surrounding it.
The second setting's humour comes across in the figure of phone calls to a Soviet leader whom we never hear speak yet totally understand through the American's conversation route. When he's told planes are heading to nuke a part of his country: "Yes, I can understand you're upset(!)" is the American's next line of dialogue. We also spend enough time with the bomber crew to have feelings towards them even if it is the worst 'story' of the three as all that happens in terms of dialogue are co-ordinates and the like which makes it feel like a shoddy documentary on an air force crew. There aren't many funny moments either although the ending does enforce some laughs and the bomber crew are involved.
Like I said, the film hasn't aged well in terms of its content about the Cold War; Russia used to be the enemy  now we have a new one. This may be my own unique interpretation but I feel events in Iraq have now come to dominate the 'war' content/topic/theme in most of our lives. As well as this, the jokes do not come as free flowing as I expected and the film does threaten to take itself a little too seriously at times  probably down to the seriousness behind the bomber crew's storyline.
Even though the brainwave of the Nazi in the chair and his ideas of creating a new, ideal group of people underground if nuclear war does happen; all the while resisting his Nazi roots and saluting with one arm is a stroke of genius, it's the ideas and script concepts that carry the film  not the humour within. This is probably Kubrick's least 'epic' film and as a result is probably (from what I've seen) my least favourite but that said, it's still an impressive attempt and shouldn't discourage you from seeing it.