Doctor Strangelove | Canadian First Time Watching | Movie Reaction | Movie Review | Movie Commentary

[@MrDoctorMonty]

As a testament to the incredible ability of Peter Sellers, you guys, like many, missed that he played Group Captain Mandrake, AND President Muffley AND Dr Strangelove. He's a legend of British comedy. Fun fact, he was also meant to play Major Kong, the B-52 pilot, but Sellers said it would be too much work for him to do and Kubrick agreed.

[@TheNeonRabbit]

He was supposed to play a Major Kong as well but hurt his ankle, which is great in my opinion because Slim Pickens did an amazing job

[@MrNihilist74]

Slim Pickens was great as Major kong anyways!

[@SuperMegaImbaLord]

wasn't it also because he had problems with the texanian accent?

[@brom00]

Also, not the only film where he plays multiple characters.

[@arandomnamegoeshere]

Rumor is that Sellers resented the number of roles he was asked to play. So he shave them off by either faking or leaning in to the ankle injury which would prevent him from climbing the ladder needed to get in to the hanging bomber set.

[@jonanderson559]

I want to take a moment to big up Slim Pickens playing the pilot. He was never told this was a comedy, so he played it completely straight and he's still hilarious, because Slim Pickens just was. Between this and Blazing Saddles he has truly earned his immortality.

[@Madbandit77]

Slim Pickens was also a member of Western filmmaker Sam Peckinpah's stock company (Major Dundee, The Ballad Of Cable Hogue, The Getaway, Pat Garrett And Billy The Kid).

[@OroborusFMA]

I highly doubt he thought it was serious filming his descent on a bomb.

[@michaelaudreson7761]

He had been a rodeo star. He had a brother called Easy.

[@johannesvalterdivizzini1523]

@@OroborusFMA Yep ---it's just another KZbin stoner BS story they repeat all over the place.

[@maxnorton1209]

“Gentlemen, you can’t fight in here, this the War Room”! One of the greatest, most memorable movie lines ever, and perfect for the mood of the movie.

[@ciaranconlon84]

I've always preferred "Mr President, we CANNOT allow a Mineshaft Gap!"

[@dr.burtgummerfan439]

"Gee, I wish WE had one of those doomsday machines!" I love the absurdity of that line! Just one is enough to kill the whole planet, so if they've got one, we need one too.

[@jculver1674]

George C. Scott really stole this movie IMHO. "Gee I wish we had one of those doomsday machines!"

[@errwhattheflip]

Absolutely agree. One of the all time great quotes

[@RobertMorgan]

The scene of the INTENSE firefight in front of the "Peace is our Profession" billboard is RIGHT up there to me with the 'no fighting in the war room' scene for dark comedic irony.

[@leonardkirk3893]

"I think the auto-destruct mechanism got hit and blew itself up!" Still my favorite line. 🙂

[@RideAcrossTheRiver]

They're flying a nuclear-equipped bomber yet Major Kong expresses UTTER disbelief at his orders!

[@signet84]

The ‘Bay of Pigs’ was the failed overthrow of the Cuban government whilst the close nuclear annihilation you were thinking of was the ‘Cuban Missile Crisis’.

[@testfire3000]

Yeah I noticed that too. At the end of the video George is saying Cuban Missile Crisis instead.

[@Dej24601]

Yes, the Bay of Pigs debacle was in 1961 and the Cuban Missile Crisis was in 1962.

[@BarryHart-xo1oy]

Thank you for pointing out these facts.

[@markcarpenter6020]

That's ok he get the red scare wrong too. That was the 50s not the 60s

[@andyb7942]

I audited a film appreciation class in college and this was one of the films we studied. There are TONS of sexual allusions in this film, which relate to the idea of war as a reaction to men's insecurity of their masculinity/sexual performance. For example, the idea of precious bodily fluids being the impetus for starting nuclear war. The names of most of the main characters have sexual connotations (Buck Turgidson, an erect penis is "turgid" -- the ineffectual (impotent) president is named Merkin Muffley, a "merkin" is a female pubic wig -- Dr. "Strangelove", etc). The "serious" discussion of the male sexual fantasy plot of ensuring a huge female to male ratio (with only the most attractive females) being used to repopulate mankind. As you noted, the opening shots of the planes being refueled are symbolic of intercourse. One of the greatest film satires ever--really demonstrates the insanity of war.

[@jnagarya519]

The lines about "precious bodily fluids" and "fluoridation" are references to the "John Birch Society" paranoia. Bob Dylan did a song about how the "Society" sees "Communists" everywhere - "The Talking John Birch Society Blues".

[@danielcobbins8861]

And then there's Lionel Mandrake. A Mandrake is a plant, the root of which is shaped like a human form. It has been said that whoever holds the root, has great sexual powers.

[@RobertMorgan]

lol to quote another great Kubrick war movie, "It's a commentary on the duality of man, sir" "The what?" "The Jungian thing, sir!"

[@djmichnal]

Also saw this in college course. Truly one of the greatest films ever made and the poster child of satire. Perhaps those that get offended by something like Tropic Thunder should see this first to fully grasp how exaggerated bad behavior can be both hilarious and used as a form of criticism.

[@aimmethod]

Slim Pickens was a legend. Small roles, but still remembered so many decades later.

[@bernhardtsen74]

"Somebody gotta go back and get a shitload of dimes!"

[@prollins6443]

Tell the governor I said "Oww!"

[@Diniifett]

What in the wild, Wild World of Sports is going on here?

[@aimmethod]

@@Diniifett Then he follows that up with something unmentionable about Kansas city. 😀

[@MarcosElMalo2]

“You talk prettier than a $20 whore”

[@charlesblaicher7589]

"...but he'll see the big board." Has to be my favorite line in the movie.

[@markkringle9144]

He's trying to take a picture of the big board!

[@chrisdoe2659]

I'm not saying we wouldn't get our hair mussed, but I DO say no more than ten to twenty million killed, tops... depending on the breaks.

[@44excalibur]

Peter Sellers played three roles in this movie: RAF Group Captain Lionel Mandrake, President Merkin Muffley, and Dr. Strangelove. His performance earned him an Academy Award nomination for Best Actor.

[@christineduckworth5712]

A merkin is an old name for a public wig!

[@christineduckworth5712]

Make that pubic wig!

[@countertony]

@@christineduckworth5712 And occasional UK slang, usually at least slightly derogatory, for an American (similar to " 'murican ", in a faux-Texan accent).

[@chrisnorman1902]

In many ways he played four roles

[@citizenbobx]

He was also supposed to play the bomber commander.

[@jangle4246]

As a teenager, I saw this in a theater when it was first released, and the audience was laughing uproariously, while also feeling the fear evoked by the events portrayed.

[@zodaxa8881]

Are you a vampire?

[@tylerfoster6267]

If I'm remembering correctly, I believe Sellers more or less ad-libbed the entire one-sided phone conversations you hear with "Dmitri" (as well as most of his dialogue, but the first phone conversation is one of the funniest parts of a great movie). Just incredible timing and comic instincts.

[@falcychead8198]

You can also see Peter Bull (Alexi) cracking up at 29:02 during Sellers' rant and the schtick with his arm.

[@AdmiralJota]

It reminded me a lot of some of Bob Newhart's telephone bits.

[@hollyodell4012]

That whole "I'm fine, you're fine, we're both fine" bit was actually very similar to a bit that Peter Sellers and Spike Milligan did on the Goon Show in the 50's. The Goon Show was full of those kinds of silly, meandering, stilted conversations, so Peter already had plenty of practice with that sort of thing. There are recordings of some Goon Show episodes available online, if you like that sort of humor it'll have you on the floor😁

[@michaellaporte4951]

It's a testament to Sellers' intelligence and strength as an actor that Kubrick, famously obsessive over getting his scenes right, let him improvise so much.

[@Llanchlo]

@@michaellaporte4951 Kubrick + Sellers - how could it fail to be brilliant

[@gregghelmberger]

Anybody who grew up during the Cold War resonates with this movie on a marrow-deep level. To someone who wasn't there at the time, there's no way to explain what it's like to go to sleep every single night knowing -- and sometimes expecting -- that the world could end before you woke up. Everything about it was nightmarish, but after a while there was no way to avoid the utter absurdity of it: we were in a world run by idiots and lunatics and never more than one twitch of a finger or damnedfool misunderstanding from being incinerated (and incineration was best-case scenario). Eventually there was no difference between laughter and tears.

[@klat2baraada579]

I remember air-raid drills in 1-4th grades. Down to the basement, duck-and-cover. I distinctly remember the sound of the siren, which ran every Friday at 11:00. It started low, quickly rose to an irritating high pitch, which it maintained for what seemed like an eternity, only to die back down, and just before stopping, it did it again, again and again.

[@aubreyjones2206]

Went into the shelters in school

[@inegom1735]

There are quite a few Dr Strangelove references that crop up across the fallout series.

[@dogawful]

I remember the once a week air raid siren test in elementary school. At most we would get under the desks. This was the mid 70's in Tacoma WA. Several major targets for Soviet ICBM's were nearby: Bremerton/Bangor, JBLM(at the time Fort Lewis and McChord AFB). I think BFI would have been a likely target as well. If I remember correctly, a few years after they stopped doing the weekly siren test and you only heard the radio test of the "Emergency Broadcast System." We didn't do any drills in school for it after that, but it was still something that people talked about. The Day After tv movie was a big deal when it came out in 1983. I did read Red Alert, the book that the movie is based on. The book is completely serious, but has a different, happier ending. I don't know how it would hold up, but it was entertaining to me as a young teenager.

[@johannesvalterdivizzini1523]

You haven't been listening to Putin or the Russian State Media lately, I guess! They threaten nuclear Armageddon every day.

[@chrisash]

Vera Lynn's "We'll meet again" playing over the montage of nuclear explosions remains to me one of the most haunting moments in film. For context, it was recorded in 1939 and was one of the most popular songs (at least among the Brits) during WWII. I think today we naturally discount the cultural importance of songs like these during the pre-television era. Even twenty years after the war, when this film was released, audiences certainly knew the song and likely had some emotional connection to it beyond the juxtaposition with the moving images of nuclear annihilation. Loved your reaction!!

[@daneng3641]

Does anybody here remember Vera Lynn? Remember how she said that We would meet again Some sunny day?

[@hemingfordgrey62]

@@daneng3641 she appeared in 2020 during the pandemic lockdown to remind us of the Blitz spirit.

[@alanholck7995]

@@daneng3641 Vera! Vera! What has become of you?

[@zatoichi1]

@@daneng3641 BRING THE BOYS BACK HOME!

[@garth7816]

Well, the irony is that it really was a sunny day at the end of the movie, but with 1 million factor sunscreen you’d probably only get a decent tan.

[@SeanHendy]

During my time as an Army officer I studied subjects and courses such as Defence Studies and International Affairs, War Studies, and so on. This film very cleverly satirises global affairs and it is so funny because it is very well conceived and whoever wrote the script understood the subject matter incredibly well. Imagine an audience of Army Officers, all with such knowledge. It had us in hysterics. Good for you for discovering this film.

[@theactualbajmahal833]

Strangelove isn't the doctor's real name. It was an anglicized version of his original German name. He's one of the nazi scientists the US let in after WWII under Operation:Papaerclip. So, Dr. Strangelove and his idea on how to "survive" represent the movie's theme of the nihilistic endgame fascism. The title is really the US military/industrial complex's strange love of power and death.

[@localroger]

Actually, in the movie someone asks Strangelove what his German name was and he answers; my father, who took German in college, told me that his German name translates to "strange love."

[@rsvp9146]

Merkwurdichliebe. Literally means "strange love"

[@normankennith7919]

doctor strangelove would be an adviser to joe biden today !!!

[@guym2222]

@@normankennith7919 Up it Trumper.

[@BarryHart-xo1oy]

Thank you for the insightful and historically accurate analysis of this film.

[@Myndir]

On nylon stockings: they were very precious behind the Iron Curtain. When my mother went to the USSR in the 1970s, she took nylon stockings and Playboy magazines to barter for rubles, since this was better than going through the official exchange rate shops when the ruble was overvalued.

[@johnludlam3905]

If you want to see a true dramatic version of this basic story, I would recommend 'Fail Safe' with Henry Fonda and Walter Matthau. It was released in the same year as Dr. Strangelove, but is a completely straight nuclear thiller.

[@mobyworm]

"Fail Safe"/"Dr. Strangelove" is an awesome contrast in tragedy/comedy, and yes, they both came out the same year (1964). Difference is"Fail Safe" is dead serious and will make you cry as hard as you laughed at Strangelove. For that reason I'd recommend saving the funny one for last, but either way, it makes for an interesting double feature.

[@gggooding]

Fail Safe *was* going to come out before Strangelove, but Kubrick insisted Strangelove be released first (same studio made both). Fonda later said he wouldn't have done Fail Safe at all had he seen Strangelove.

[@rickc661]

from 1959 , ' On the Beach'. side point, the Bonnie Dobson tune ' Morning Dew' most famous from the Grateful Dead, came direct from this flick.

[@rocketdave719]

​@@mobyworm As it happens, I just rewatched Fail Safe a few days ago and it actually did make me cry. As much as I like Dr. Strangelove, it's a shame that Fail Safe got overshadowed by it.

[@TemplarOnHigh]

Fail Safe is a terrifying movie because it makes the same points as Strangelove, but without the buffoonery. You can see how the decisions can be made by totally rational actors if the "right" errors in the system are made. "I wanna say - and this is very important - at the end we lucked out. It was luck that prevented nuclear war. We came *that* close to nuclear war at the end. Rational individuals: Kennedy was rational, Kruschev was rational, Castro was rational; rational individuals came *that close* to total destruction of their societies. And that danger exists today." - McNamara, The Fog of War

[@weinerschnitzelrock1]

I liked Simone's reactions ! On a serious note: A movie "Fail Safe" with Henry Fonda was released same time (or near). It was serious. Kubrick started out making a accurate film about nuclear war. Writing the script they kept noticing the absurdity of Mass Nuclear Destruction. And the absurdity of the deterrent of MAD. Mass Assured Destruction of both sides. It morphed into a Black Comedy. It had a "pie fight" at the end --in the "War Room" but it was cut from the film.

[@scottcharles3126]

Fail Safe is fantastic, same story just not played for laughs. It's scary.

[@40hup]

MAD - Mutual assured destruction

[@Martin-xd4jl]

11:05 funny story about George C Scott's performance in this movie - Kubrick had Scott do one ridiculous over-exaggerated take for each scene, assuring the actor each time that it was just to try things out and they'd use one of the more serious ones for the final cut. Kubrick then used all of the weird, manic takes and none of the normal ones.

[@bighuge1060]

And once again, I wish I scrolled down and saw your comment before I posted the same thing. I loved Scott's performance.

[@88wildcat]

And the whole backwards trip into that weird somersault thing was a total accident by Scott. He basically tripped over himself while walking backwards and Kubrick liked it so much he kept it in the film.

[@TSIRKLAND]

Which apparently infuriated Scott! He hated having been tricked; he hated having those manic performances on screen, as he considered himself a dramatic actor. That's what I've heard, anyway. It completely works for the film. Kubrick may have been a real a**hole to his actors, but he sure got results and made great films!

[@TSIRKLAND]

Also I wanted to point out the dry, deadpan performance by Keenan Wynn ("Batshit" guy), who does have a history of wild comedic performances (such as in The Nutty Professor, and other Disney films, etc), but in this one that deadpan seriousness in the face of ridiculous circumstances was just the right note.

[@davidspicer4330]

They did make a serious movie with the subject matter called fail safe.made about the same time.

[@GoldenShellback]

Peter Sellers often played multiple characters in his movies. Another great Cold War movie of his is The Mouse That Roared (1959).

[@JayM409]

And its sequel, 'The Mouse on the Moon.'

[@renlessard]

One of the greatest films ever made. The President's one sided call to the Premier is a master class of the one sided conversation bit. Bob Newhart himself couldn't have done better

[@theactualbajmahal833]

I wish someone would react to Hell is for Heroes. Bob gives great phone in that.

[@Guitcad1]

I'm pretty sure Bob Newhart saw this more than once and took notes.

[@renlessard]

@@Guitcad1 Button down mind of Bob Newhart came out in 1960 so he had the bit down by the time this came out. Sellers was a genius though

[@Hexon66]

@@renlessard Yeah, both are comedic geniuses, but with this particular one-sided phone call bit, Newhart has no peer.

[@RobertMorgan]

You're fine, and I'm fine....yes, I agree, it's great to be fine. No, no I assure you that I"M more sorry this happened...

[@DoctorsDriveClassics]

You guys totally nailed the reaction again! Another of my favourite movies.

[@scozz6139]

Peter Sellers was a genius, from the Pink Panther movies to "Being There" to this movie,... where he plays 3 separate characters! What a great actor he was!

[@jhdix6731]

He also played three characters in "The Mouse that roared" (a British comedy from 1959, also about post-WW2 politics and "the bomb").

[@stefanlaskowski6660]

I've got all his Pink Panther films on DVD. Brilliant!

[@JayM409]

@@jhdix6731 He played the Queen, The Prime Minister, and the Officer commanding the 'Invasion.'

[@BarryHart-xo1oy]

Quite right-l don’t know if there’s anyone today who possesses his protean acting abilities.

[@Varksterable]

And still I see no mention of "The Party". A Sellers film which is hillarious as any other, yet to most seems to have slipped totally under the radar.

[@jaymantisgaming]

''YOU CANT FIGHT IN HERE, THIS IS THE WAR ROOM!!!' best line ever

[@jksgameshelf3378]

George was totally correct about the music and the plane's penetration! That's why Kubrick chose that music because of the suggestive nature of the act of refueling the plane.

[@phila3884]

I saw it more as a jarring juxtaposition of war planes flying to ballet music, kind like the space station spinning to the Blue Danube Waltz in 2001.

[@ianburns1167]

@@phila3884 It's both. The movie loves the dissonance between the cold war and life going on, but it also loves making fun of the hypermasculine sexualized military culture.

[@johnbrowne3518]

It was an instrumental version of "Try a Little Tenderness" Which was originally recorded in 1932! The Otis Redding (backed by Booker T. and the M.G.s) version was over 30 years later.

[@WaywardVet]

Fill me, baby! God I love you, sweet tanker of mine! I swoon for that release of your precious bodily fluids!

[@jamesalexander5623]

@@johnbrowne3518 Frank Sinatra had the best romantic version!

[@JohnRandomness105]

The colonel who led the invasion force is Keenan Wynn, son of Ed Wynn. He played a villainous businessman in several Disney movies, Alonzo (sp?) Hawk. The movies were "The Absent-Minded Professor", "The Son of Flubber", and "Herbie Rides Again".

[@batmanvsjoker7725]

“Gentlemen, you can’t fight here. This is the War Room!” I love that line so much XD 🤣

[@ThatsMrPencilneck2U]

A Pentagon official said the film looked like a documentary, because the in flight procedure executed by the crew of the B-52 was perfectly accurate.

[@ClayLoomis1958]

I love the scene at 29:00. Actor Peter Bull, playing Russian Ambassador Alexi de Sadesky, almost breaks out laughing when Peter Sellers starts beating his arm. I have no idea how many times they needed to do that scene because of people laughing, but the smile Peter is trying so hard to suppress tells me it required a few takes.

[@RideAcrossTheRiver]

Arm's control!

[@klat2baraada579]

He's laughing because that wasn't in the script. One thing Stanley kubrick usually hated was actors deviating from his script. Normally, that actor would have known that was coming. For all the movies Kubrick made, he made two exceptions to his 'Stick-to-the-script' rule: Peter Sellers as Dr Strangelove. and Ronald Lee Ermey, as the drill instructor in 'Full Metal Jacket'.

[@AnthonyFlack]

@@klat2baraada579 - apparently he got Ermey to improvise lines for two days, had it all transcribed, put his favourite lines into the script and then Ermey learned the scripted version word for word.

[@walt2840]

This movie inspired me to join the Air Force. Years later I was standing Nuclear Alert in Germany and Strangelove was a movie we watched on alert.

[@Sough]

The movie where the Air Force destroyed the world inspired you to join the air force?

[@YvonneSanders-hv2gc]

Or to be ssne enough to prevent it​@@Sough

[@hbron112]

It's really entertaining to see your reaction to a movie that was so topical 60 years ago. It was a big hit at the time and yes, people definately got the irony and the message. There were two big popular movies about nuclear war in the 1960's. This one, the comedy, and "Fail Safe," the realistic one. However, this one was actually more realistic. There was a scare in 1960 when a base commander sealed his base and sent his planes (in the UK). It didn't get this far, but some of the planes were recalled when they were over East Germany. I get chills when I recall how close we were then and other times. I wonder how close we are today.

[@DoubleMonoLR]

Also real cases of the reverse, where a Russian early-warning operator(Stanislav Petrov) potentially saved the world - he saw data suggesting missiles were launched by the US. He thought it was more likely(but wasn't certain) it wasn't a real signal, and didn't pass it on to his superiors. Likewise 1 of 3 commanders(Vasili Arkhipov) on a Russian submarine didn't agree to fire a missile during the cuban missile crisis. They were being depth-charged with non-fatal explosions to try and force them to the surface(which could indicate to them that a war had started), had no outside communication, were low on oxygen, and instructions said to launch the nuke if they were under attack.

[@HistoritorJimaldus]

In the movie the base commander is a conspiracist loon - and today in reality conspiracist loons have been elected to prominent positions of power and might soon be controlling elections in key swing states

[@douginorlando6260]

There were other Cold War movies too … “the day after” and “War Games” come to mind

[@YvonneSanders-hv2gc]

Tied to this there were CND protests

[@anathardayaldar]

8:20 the way Simone's eyes popped when he said "bodily fluids"

[@thegunslinger1363]

Fun fact: General Ripper and Turgidson were based on a guy called General Curtis Lemay. A warhawk who advocated for the bombing of Cuba during the Missile Crisis.

[@alfredroberthogan5426]

He was also the American Independent party ultra-conservative VP running mate in 1968 with right-wing AL Gov. George C. Wallace.

[@danu_emrys]

Lemay also sat in during the Kennedy autopsy, it is alleged that he smoked a cigar and wouldn't put it out when asked.

[@jpkimmer]

Peter Sellers was nominated for an Academy Award for the 3 roles he played in this movie. The move was a box office success.

[@michaelbuhl4250]

One of my favorite jokes in this movie is super subtle. When they show Major Kong (played by Slim Pickens, who was also in Blazing Saddles) reading a Playboy, the woman in the centerfold is General Turgidson's secretary. To top it off, the magazine covering her butt in the centerfold photo is a copy of Foreign Affairs, which is one of the leading foreign policy publications in the US.

[@Justin_Leone]

I must have seen this movie at least half a dozen times, and I never noticed that that was the same woman.

[@cjmacq-vg8um]

you're confusing the failed "bay of pigs" invasion with the cuban missle crises. they're two seperate events that involved castro, cuba and prez kennedy. this film is the comedic side to an accidental nuclear war that was seriously tackled in the film "fail-safe" released the same year as this but several months after. that's peter sellers playing 3 roles in this film (the president, dr. strangelove and the british officer on the base.) he also played 3 roles (including a queen) in the hilarious film "the mouse that roared" released in 1959 (?). thanks for the video.

[@tylerfoster6267]

Also, the same guy, Pablo Ferro, designed both this and MIB's opening credits sequences. He designed many famous credits sequences and bits of famous films, similar to Saul Bass, the hugely famous designer of many Hitchcock credit sequences and posters, including Psycho and Vertigo.

[@auerstadt06]

Saul Bass also did "The Shining" and United Airlines planes livery in the 80's.

[@artieeffham355]

When I saw the credit sequence, I was like "So that's where Pablo Ferro got the idea for the opening titles of Stop Making Sense". Lol, I'm dumb.

[@Dystopia1111]

"Purity of essence"...my favorite movie ever. Hilariously disturbing and disturbingly hilarious. I really can't think of any other movie with this incredible mix of perfect writing, visuals, performances, direction, and music. I've watched and re-watched a lot of great movies, but this is my 1 absolute eternal favorite. I don't expect to see a more perfect movie in this lifetime, it's still remembered 60 years later for good reason.

[@Cedarlick]

The idea that fluoridation was a " commie

[@stevedavis5704]

Growing up I had a neighbor who was a crewman on a B-52 during the Cuban missile crises. He said that the planes were prepped and ready to go with the crews all sleeping with their planes so they could be airborne in 15-20 minutes in case of attack. Once airborne the pilot would open sealed orders to learn what the target was. Since they were stationed in Germany it was presumed the target would be in the Soviet Union somewhere. At the briefing they asked ‘Where do we go after the mission?’ The reply was ‘Anywhere you want cuz we won’t be here to come back to.’ Scarey times so Hollywood was trying to show the futility of war and mutually assured destruction.

[@SgtHookhead9910]

And here's a "fun" fact about the Cuban Missile Crises. They had nukes in Cuba, ready to go! They were actually tactical nukes to be used against our Navy to completely destroy any invading force before they make a landing. At the time the U.S. had no idea! And humanity lives on because the crises was defused before we actually invaded as planned.

[@Konradius001]

@@SgtHookhead9910 Which by the way was in response to similar missiles that were already stationed in Turkey and could strike Moscow. They were dismantled within the year after the CMC, and it is widely believed this was in the agreement that ended it.

[@TheMrPeteChannel]

I thought all 52s were stationed in the lower 48 states?

[@stevedavis5704]

@@TheMrPeteChannel At different times they have been stationed outside the US. If I understand correctly there is a unit stationed for extended drills in England right now.

[@fburejsza]

The strange love is not just the doctor, but is also our strange love war. At the start of the movie notice the war planes make love to each other with a love song playing in the background.

[@timhibbard4226]

Awesome! I get to be the first one to post the fairly well known bts story that Sellers wasn’t actually ever supposed to stand up while playing Strangelove. His reaction in the movie is the real take of him realizing his mistake and next couple of line were just him going with it and riffing. Such a classic moment in such a classic movie and it was technically a “mistake”.

[@donaldb1]

Strangelove himself is only in the film for a bit, but his spirit fills the whole movie. He is the embodiment of nuclear strategy and cold-war thinking.

[@RideAcrossTheRiver]

Kissinger took notes!

[@davevannatta985]

I definitely consider this a perfect film. Stanley Kubrick made a comedy about nuclear war during a time of hightened tensions between the u.s. and the Soviet union.

[@krautgazer]

It's definitely one of the best films of all time.

[@wackyvorlon]

It’s shot beautifully too. If you read up on it, there’s a terrifying amount of reality to this movie.

[@dan_doe_91]

You might want to watch `To Be or Not to Be`, a brilliant satirical movie made in 1942 that is mocking Hitler and the nazis at a time when in the real world Germany pretty much still had the upper hand in the war. That was ballsy.

[@MagicSquid]

17:29 That's a heat shield over the barrel which has the holes in it. It is there to prevent you from burning your hand on the hot barrel while the holes allow for air flow to the barrel and heat to exchange with the cooler air.

[@jonhenke1504]

A very interesting thing occurred in the movie When Slim Pickens is reading off the contents of the survival kit he says that you could have a pretty good weekend in Vegas. However he actually says if you look at his mouth a good weekend in Dallas. But the reason they dubbed that out is this movie came out just after John F Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas so they changed it by dubbing in Vegas to avoid any kind of controversy!! Also I was wondering if you noticed that the "British soldier" locked in with the crazy American General the "President" and "Dr Strangelove" are all three one in the same actors Peter sellers!

[@bengelman2600]

The movie completely stands on its own as an accurate drama. I've heard it was changed to be a comedy late in the writing process. Good eye George on the sexual nature of the refueling. It's intentional. "Officer exchange program" is such a great silly joke. OPE POE is referenced in other movies by the way. It's written on the bathroom stalls in Raising Arizona. Yall should watch that!

[@flarrfan]

And the words of the prophets are written on the bathroom stalls...

[@kenttaylor9238]

Peter Sellers was a comedy genius. I highly recommend "Being There" with Peter Sellers and Shirley McClaine.

[@marcbloom7462]

Kubrick went to see a play with George C Scott before casting him. The play was Othello with James Earl Jones in the title role. Kubrick hired both and gave Jones more lines than his character originally had. When Slim Pickens was cast, the British crew was amazed at how in character he was, Pickens wasn't acting, it was just his normal accent and behaviors.

[@TheNeonRabbit]

As weird as it may seem, Strangelove's arm acting on its own is based on a real condition called "Alien hand syndrome". Usually occurring it people with certain types of brain damage the limb acts completely independently of conscious will of the subject, sometimes falling back on muscle memory.

[@NomadBulldog]

The implication being Strangelove was an Operation Paperclip Nazi now advising the US President.

[@FreddieHg37]

Am I wrong or is it also called "Dr. Strangelove" after the condition was popularized by the film?

[@petersvillage7447]

I always took the significance of Doctor Strangelove to be this: he's clearly still a Nazi in his heart, and by the end of the film he's envisioning a eugenics-based future for what remains of society. Nazi science and Nazi scientists helped to create the precipice of nuclear destruction that characterised the cold war - for example, Nazi V2 Rockets were the work of Werner Von Braun who ended up working to develop the US missiles that would be used to deliver nuclear bombs. A lot of Nazi scientists ended up working for both the US and the Soviet Union. So, the character of Doctor Strangelove highlights this, and suggests a bitter irony that even though the Nazis were defeated by the Russians and the Americans, they could get the last laugh by slaughtering everybody and making the survivors live by their rules. Funnily enough one of the James Bond novels does something similar, with a British missile developer turning out to be a Nazi infiltrator intent on wreaking revenge on those who destroyed the Third Reich.

[@sergiodavila5269]

The part where Major Kong rides the nuke down is funny as hell & classic!!!!!! 🔥🤣🔥🤣🔥

[@princetopher]

At 29:02 Notice the man with that coat and hat fighting back laughter 😂😂😂 Legend!!

[@eugenemccool3579]

6:36 What I think I remember hearing was: This was, originally, being written as a serious movie. But, after learning all that a civilian could learn, about nuclear war, at the time, they decided to write it as a comedy. Because, otherwise, it would have been just too “heavy” a movie.

[@jayeisenhardt1337]

"they decided to write it as a comedy. Because, otherwise, it would have been just too “heavy” a movie." That makes sense. Reminds me of that movie Tombstone when they staring at each other and Doc winks and boy got jumpy and went for it. M.A.D. is just a big Mexican stand off between countries with everyone else standing around to close and some bringing a knife to a gun fight. Last guy who threw down their knife we killed so disarming anyone else ain't gonna happen anytime soon.

[@jonathancain1646]

when i saw you were doing this movie, i screamed with joy. glad you enjoyed it.

[@dlweiss]

Oh yeah, the creators of Fallout absolutely drew inspiration from the end of this film. Even the old-timey retro music vibes that permeat the series. :)

[@testfire3000]

I love the Fallout series! It is fun to see George wearing the Intelligence shirt from FO4 in some of their videos.

[@Cheepchipsable]

Fallout was a satire of "What if the 50's future promised us was real.." So, flying cars, nuclear powered everything, a robot in every home and Reds under the bed. And we all were kept toast warm under our asbestos blankets, (cough, cough). Sort of came from the same place but not really, as this movie was more based in reality. There was a doctrine of Mutual Assured Destruction, and the US had bombers flying 24/7, ready to retaliate in case of a surprise attack by the Russians.

[@jeffsherk7056]

The explosions at the end of the movie are from above-ground nuclear test footage that occurred from 1946 to 1963. In the early 60s, lots of people just assumed they would die in an all-out nuclear war. There were people who sort of had a carpe diem philosophy because they weren't sure they would have a future. And I think this movie was a warning about how badly things could go wrong. Another movie in the same vein is Fail Safe.

[@ExUSSailor]

A work of absolute genius! Equal parts hilarious, and, darkly terrifying. As someone who grew up in the Reagan era, at the end of the Cold War, who used to lie awake nights wondering when the bombs were gonna fall, this movie still strikes a chord.

[@rollotomassi6232]

The United States was never close to war with the USSR when Reagan was in office. The USSR was in no shape to remotely be able to go to war at that time and collapsed due to Reagan's constant pressure and their own internal turmoil and bankrupted economy. The Reagan years were the safest and strongest (both militarily and economically) that the USA has ever experienced.

[@Fedorevsky]

Nah, just hilarious. I grew up at the same time and I never lay awake afraid of anything of the sorts. There was never any reason to do so.

[@Fedorevsky]

@O. B. He must've had crazy parents or an insane teacher scaring him about it or something.

[@dr.burtgummerfan439]

I had a bad dream once involving a mushroom cloud in the distance, turning to run, and suddenly feeling every cell in my body begin to vibrate before I woke up.

[@DopeSauceBenevolence]

George, to answer your question about “two beds in the same room,” this is a movie, not a show. So the networks were responsible for their own airing - but you can MAKE any film, and it will be rated accordingly.

[@Vohaul86]

It breaks my heart to have heard so many people not willing to watch black-and-white movies because "colored ones are newer and as such better". (And the same with practical effects vs. CGI.) Dr Strangelove is a phenomenal movie.

[@nedporkus8602]

Pretty much all the great movie of today stand on the shoulders of the great movies that were made in the golden era of film making (many of them black and white). When you watch current movies without knowing the body of movie classics that came before, you miss many of the "Easter egg" homage scenes that current film makers place in their movies, and also miss the references to ideas first raised in earlier movies (i.e. the intertextuality). Frankly, a great many of the old films have really excellent stories and acting because they had to, they couldn't rely on distracting the audience with spectacular computer generated special effects, so the story and the characters had to be strong to carry the movie on their own. There is a lot of really good stuff to be found in older B&W films, and a good place to start is AFI's list of 100 films from the first 100 years of film making.

[@dr.burtgummerfan439]

There are also people who think old comedies can't be funny. The Marx Brothers movies are a few years shy of being 100, and they're STILL funny. Except maybe The Big Store, but it wasn't considered that great back then either.😁

[@Vohaul86]

@@dr.burtgummerfan439 Yes! And after seeing some of those (Duck Soup etc.) Sean Connery's line "I should have mailed it to the Marx Brothers" in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (a movie I had seen years earlier) became probably my favorite one in that movie. (As a kid I had seen Groucho Marx being shown in stuff like the Looney Tunes but didn't get the references back then.)

[@garymcgregor5951]

Which is weird, since so many of them are crap.

[@jayeisenhardt1337]

kinda forget this was in black and white and just roll with it

[@Jay-ln1co]

The marching melody you heard during the plane scenes is shared across two songs, When Johnny Comes Marching Home and Johnny I Hardly Knew Ye. One is a pro-war song, the other an anti-war song. With no lyrics, it's up to the viewer to interpret it how you wish.

[@christopherwall2121]

A third interpretation I like is that it could totally also be "Ants Go Marching"

[@iluvausten40517]

My favourite line in this movie is when George C. Scott is talking, oh so casually, about the "acceptable" civilian causalities of nuclear war. You included the end of that speech in the video edit, but for those who have not seen this film (and you really should . . . it has attained a new kind of resonance, sadly, in the world we live in today) . . . here is the whole line: Mr. President, I'm not saying we wouldn't get our hair mussed. But I do say no more than ten to twenty million killed, tops! Uh, depending on the breaks.

[@jimtams]

Simone nailed it, the title cards were handwritten frame by frame by cutting the words out of the film reel, filmmaking was just next level craftsmanship back in the day. And George nailed it too, the plane refuelling scene was meant to mimic a romantic sex scene Lololol

[@no_rubbernecking]

This film saved all of our lives and how many people today have even heard of it

[@jayeisenhardt1337]

I mean... What good is a dooms day device if you don't tell people about it? 16:45

[@somerotter]

Both Russia and the US were building large underground shelters prior to this movie, and private bomb shelters were often added to middle class houses during that era. Even beyond the Cuban Missile Crisis the fear and threat of nuclear war was ever present - I remember it as a kid in the 80’s, and all the songs and media dealing with nuclear paranoia. Something like Dr. Strangelove was both terrifying and a cathartic release of that anxiety in laughter.

[@lethaldose2000]

Fun fact: Kubrick played George C. Scott kind of dirty. He told him to act the character over the top for the rehearsals (all the while taping them) and had his act the actual shot more subdued. So depending on how the movie flowed he would make his pick. Kubrick went with the rehearsal takes since they fit more with the over-the-top nature of the movie.

[@lethaldose2000]

@Danny Dolan he has the freedom to push them cuz he's a legend.

[@memonk11]

Film

[@roberttaylor5997]

The theme song is When Johnny Comes Marching Home, but in this film it always reminds me of The Runaway Train, which seems kind of appropriate too.

[@shainewhite2781]

Nominated for 4 Oscars including Best Picture but lost to My Fair Lady, which took home 8. It's still the funniest cold war comedy thrillers ever made and it still holds 100% on RT

[@dr.burtgummerfan439]

Well, My Fair Lady WAS better.

[@happyjohn354]

Nylon stockings are good for improvised water filtration if you were wondering. At one point I'm pretty sure they would also provide several unlubricated condoms in survival kits because it was light compact sterile and each could hold 1-2 liters of water. Both of which could be bought in mass quantities easily without any costly military R&D

[@crystalleewatson9888]

more fun facts: the band Megadeath got the idea for their band name from this movie. also, apparently Ronald Regan asked to be taken to "the War Room" once he was sworn in as president, and was disappointed to find out it wasn't real. bonus fun fact: "peace is our profession" was the actual slogan of the military when this movie was made, and the way Kubrick beat you over the head with it in this movie meant they changed that slogan shortly thereafter, lol

[@hackerx7329]

The big board is real or at least was still real back in the mid 60s and was fed in part by the DEW line stations in Canada. No idea how much of that system is used now with satellite monitoring systems watching for launches now.

[@arandomnamegoeshere]

War rooms existed. But they didn't look like this movie. After this movie, everyone had this in mind when they put together a war room.... and thus realty began to resemble the fiction.

[@OklasoonaHomer]

"Peace is Our Profession" was the motto of the Strategic Air Command.

[@Johnny_Socko]

As commented above, the motto of the Strategic Air Command was "Peace is Our Profession"; to which smartass staffers added, "War is Just a Hobby". 😆

[@Yggdrasil42]

The band is called Megadeth (one fewer a).

[@onikaze8445]

watching this I realized the cowboy on the bomber is the head henchman who reports to Heady Lamar's character in Blazing Saddles. Strangelove's line, "So much time and little to do." I wonder if Gene Wilder's line from Willy Wonka was a nod to that.

[@kylelewis4685]

Legendary film. Legendary actors, Legendary director. I have seen this film, hundreds of times and its one of my all time favorites

[@davidmichael6239]

Code on marts amplifier in back to the future was crm-114

[@donotevenbegintocare]

"Gentlemen, you can't fight in here! This is the war room!"

[@shirtless_kirk]

Another movie in this vein, but much more serious is called By Dawns Early Light, which also actually has James Earl Jones in a supporting role. Something you might want to check out!

[@stefanstiefsohn5398]

"Mein Führer, I can walk!" is the best last line of any movie and I will die on that hill.

[@MapManLK]

"Strangelove" was a box office and critical success complete with Oscar nominations. "Fail-Safe" which came out a year later is the straight dramatic version of this tale. Despite the fact it's a very good film, it didn't do as well at the box office. Fascinating story behind the making of the two films.

[@leeroyrokkenrohl5507]

I'm pretty sure that Dr. Strangelove the character was supposed to represent the influence of Wernher von Braun who was a major contributor to the United States developing rockets of various types. All those main characters represent the other major countries and how they collectively almost broke the planet! Peter Sellers is amazing and you should watch all his work and the movie about his life!

[@michaelescareno7048]

Exactly!!

[@Cheepchipsable]

Yes, Von Braun collaborated with the Nazi's and built the V2 rockets that bombed London, and for his crimes he went to the US to start a new, well paid life.

[@christopherwall2121]

By "influence" I assume you mean Von Braun was a Nazi, and Kubrick was pretty sure that in this sort of instance, he'd start implementing some of the old ways into our nuclear survival plans?

[@douginorlando6260]

Yeah. But Dr Strangelove reminds me of the war monger Kissinger and the lot of them remind me of the small group that pushed the Iraq wars

[@troglokev]

Edward Teller is another strong candidate to be the basis for the character.

[@Alvin-1138]

Ive watched this 20 times at least. This is the first time I noticed that the Secretary to General Turgidson, is the PlayBoy Centerfold model!!

[@jbacunn]

Peter Sellers usually gets most of the credit for his multiple performances in this movie and rightfully so, he is terrific but George C Scott is brilliant and so funny. He's my favorite character.

[@robertpearson8798]

Absolutely.

[@accam6734]

Scott is hilariously brilliant in this movie.

[@terririnella4032]

my favourite part is the bomber crew, the actors, their scenario, the music, all they go through... in any other movie, you were meant to cheer for them, they are the everymen, doing whatever they need to, facing down the odds and sacrificing everything to complete the mission (they even lose control and have to struggle right to the end to complete the mission)...you want to cheer them to succeed and you feel it while watching the movie (even though if they do succeed, it's the end of the world)

[@AlanCanon2222]

Pablo Ferro designed the titles for both Dr Strangelove and Men In Black!!! The man is legend as a title designer. That's his handwriting, in both cases. Can you find the typo in the intro credits?

[@davidbaker1363]

Probably already noted: the super secret communication device and the huge amplifier in "Back to the Future" are both called "CRM-114". A bit of an homage, like "1138" always cropping up in Star Wars after Lucas' early film "THX-1138".

[@jessharvell1022]

sterling hayden was indeed the police captain in the godfather. he's kind of the unsung hero of this movie because he's essentially parodying the cigar-chomping tough guy noir/western/war characters he played in the 40s and 50s. great actor, kept on working into the 80s, but unfortunately there was always a stain on his rep because he named names during the HUAC anti-communist trials in the 50s. (something he was haunted by and expressed much regret for.) paul thomas anderson had expressed an interest in doing a movie about the HUAC hearings with a hayden-like figure at the center, much like he took inspiration from l. ron hubbard for the master.

[@jamesalexander5623]

Yes and a Scary Dude at 6' 5" ....

[@christopherwall2121]

I always felt like Ripper was Hayden's atoment for naming names. Playing this absolutely guano-brained, John Birch-iest John Birch right winger hawk you ever saw, who throws the world into nuclear war because he was flaccid and tired.

[@KelsaRavenlock]

The song you were wondering about is "when Johnny comes marching home" it was written during the Civil War and dedicated to the military on both sides of the conflict as a comfort song. It exists in the public domain so is free use.

[@lethaldose2000]

Simone, you low volume screeking and goulish laugh are simple to DIE FOR. You are the best. Love this reaction.

[@GenX1964]

16:00 Yoda. Never made that connection. Wonder if that was an influence on the Yoda voicer.

[@garykolb4550]

I was 10 years old when I went with my parents to see this movie. I don’t remember my reaction to the film, but it was a terrifying time. We had nuclear bomb drills in school (cover your eyes, don’t touch the lockers because they may get hot(!)), once a month air raid sirens would go off in the city as a test and periodically all the television stations would suddenly interrupt regular programming and broadcast test patterns with a message that the Emergency Broadcast System was being tested. Some buildings had signs indicating they had bomb shelters inside. The US had airborne bombers flying 24/7 with nuclear bombs onboard. It’s against this backdrop that Kubrick made this film.

[@Murdo2112]

Kids these days don't realise that you can survive a nuclear attack with a few cans of beans and a saucepan of water, if you take your kitchen door off and lean it against the wall.

[@dr.burtgummerfan439]

Duck and cover!

[@flarrfan]

An all-time great, my second favorite Kubrick. None of the other reactions I've seen included the ending and song, so kudos for you guys, because you can't end it without "We'll Meet Again"...

[@wsn0009]

So excited! I'm a big Kubrick fan and this is one of the great dark comedies 👍

[@kendeeni]

It was great fun to see this classic (for the millionth time) through your fresh eyes! Thanks!

[@timhibbard4226]

My favorite factoid about this movie is that it is actually an adaptation of short story that wasn’t comedic. lol This and Clockwork Orange are probably Kubrick’s most creative movies.

[@iKvetch558]

You are right that it is a comedic take on serious material, but it was a novel and not a short story...Red Alert written by Peter George. 💯✌

[@wackyvorlon]

@@iKvetch558 additionally, a serious movie was made. It never had the traction of Dr Strangelove though.

[@TTM9691]

Although I agree "Clockwork Orange" is mindblowing, dazzling and fantastic, I wouldn't exactly say "2001: A Space Odyssey" isn't creative! Every Kubrick movie from The Killing to the boot camp sequence of Full Metal Jacket is highly original and creative, and broke new ground. I do love a good "Clockwork Orange" reaction though, so I'm all for talking that one up!!! (I thought they had done that movie already!).

[@wackyvorlon]

@@TTM9691 honestly, IMO Kubrick was one of the greatest directors we’ve ever seen. I’m not sure he ever made a movie that wasn’t a masterpiece.

[@TTM9691]

@@wackyvorlon His first two "indies", which no one ever saw, aren't, but yeah, his "real" filmography, which starts with "The Killing" and right through at least to the first section of "Full Metal Jacket" are all acknowledged masterpieces of cinema, no one would argue. I'm not a fan of "Eyes Wide Shut", which he never really got to finish properly, and I don't love the second half of "Full Metal Jacket", but everything that precedes it is A+ in my book. "Spartacus" is him doing a big Hollywood blockbuster for hire so I don't know if we call that a masterpiece....or just a great Hollywood movie! It's not his vision, he didn't consider it one of his "own", but no one can deny it's a great movie!

[@garylee3685]

Two beds together was a thing for TV, not movies. For a more serious look at nuclear annihilation see Fail Safe from the same year. The time we came close to nuclear war you are referring to wasn't Bay Of Pigs. It was the blockade of Cuba because they got nukes from Russia (which they got because of the Bay of Pigs). "A guy could have a pretty good weekend in Vegas" is an audio edit with Vegas replacing Dallas because of the Kennedy assassination during post production. Mandrake/ the President/ Stranglove are all played by Peter Sellers. He was supposed to play the bomber pilot too, but broke his leg. Slim Pickens got the part. You may recognize him from Blazing Saddles. The underground shafts were a real thing, like a backyard bomb shelter times 10,000.

[@gustocrm114]

Couple points from someone from the time. These have probably been brought up before. Film was supposed to premiere Nov 1963, awkward. Cuban missile crisis was Oct 1962 another awkward moment. Movie was pure genius. Edit: CRM114 is referenced in all Kubrick movies. Thanks

[@sntxrrr]

So happy to see you react to and enjoy an older classic movie! I hope you will do this more often, Seven Samurai would be a cool one to pick up...

[@clash5j]

29:01 The actor playing Alexei just can't help himself from laughing at what Peter Sellers is doing

[@johncampbell756]

Peter Sellers in three great performances as Predident, the British officer and Dr. Strangelove.

[@MrWhit30]

This movie was hilarious, terrifying, and super influential to 12 year old me when it first came on TV in the 60s. One of the greatest movies ever.

[@MattMichaelVO]

Fun fact: When Dr Strangelove is punching his arm to wake it up, take a look at the Russian Ambassador behind him. He's trying to hold back a laugh. Can you blame him?

[@benmayer5932]

You will see from time to time homages to this movie in the form of "POE/OPE" randomly in various movies. Right now I can remember that it is written on the back of the bathroom door when the jailbirds are cleaning up after escaping from prison in Raising Arizona. I've seen it elsewhere...And I love that you read his binder that said Megadeaths!

[@randyshoquist7726]

Also, "CRM114" almost took on a life of its own, in subsequent Kubrick films, as well as other films and tv shows.

[@zenarcher9633]

28:20 It's entertaining to watch the background actors try to keep a straight face while Sellers is going through his final Strangelove routine.