Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb, directed by Stanley Kubrick and released in 1964, depicts a nuclear crisis during the Cold War. The film has a satirical nature and presents an appeal to nuclear deterrence and the Cold War. Dr. Strangelove begins with General Jack Ripper initiating a nuclear attack on Russia’s nuclear missile bases. After being alerted, Major “King” Kong, a B-52 Bomber Pilot, continues with the checklist of items to secure a nuclear attack. Meanwhile, President Merkin Muffley, General Buck Turgidson and Ambassador Desadeski attempt to avert a nuclear crisis with Russia. While the overall message of the film was a real threat, the satirical nature of the film provides a light-hearted approach to the threat of nuclear war with a communist country. Using sexual allegory from foreplay to climax, the auteur demonstrates nuclear deterrence and its relation to the Cold War.
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Dr. Strangelove official trailer / Sony
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Dr. Strangelove opening sequence / Columbia Pictures Corp.
Tracy Reed in Dr. Strangelove / IMDB
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In Dr. Strangelove, the auteur uses many sexual symbols. Following the opening monologue, the viewer is introduced to the subtle sexual innuendos hidden within the film. The scene involves a B-52 bomber and a refueling plane docking. Initially, the viewer is greeted by (what appears to be) the fuel boom of the refueling plane. The fuel boom is symbolistic of male genitalia, while the fueling port on the B-52 is representative of female genitalia. The connection between the two planes is significant because this is the first innuendo the viewer sees and is symbolic of copulation. After the conjugal encounter with the planes, we are introduced to General Ripper, a sexual fiend in his own right. General Ripper uses two obvious sex symbols (Macklin, 56). The first being a cigar which is a dominant fixture is these scenes. The second symbol is the pistol which he later uses to commit suicide. General Jack Ripper (Sterling Hayden), a paranoid Air Force General, is under the impression the Russians are fluorinating the American drinking water supply. This threat prompts General Ripper to initiate “Plan R”. This wing attack pattern called for the dozens of B-52 bombers running twenty-four hour operations around the Russian boarders to commence an attack pattern on Russian nuclear missile bases. General Ripper believed that a preemptive nuclear strike was the best deterrence from a nuclear conflict with the Russians and this was the perfect opportunity. Ironically, the motto of Burpleson Air Force Base is “Peace is our Profession.” Throughout the movie, the viewer is given these slight ironies and allusions. Many of which are in the names of the characters. Names like Buck Turgidson and Merkin Muffley are references to a “swollen male”, and female genitalia respectively. Other characters include references to King Kong, bat excrement, aphrodisiacs, and Marquis de Sade (a perverted lover from the 18th century who coined the term sadist). Surprisingly with the use of sexual humor and connotations, the film has only one female character, Miss Scott played by a Playboy centerfold Tracy Reed.
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In the 1960s, many American’s feared the possibility of a nuclear holocaust. That threat is still extremely prevalent today. In 1960, the United States’ nuclear stockpile was 31,139 warheads versus Russia’s at 6,129 warheads. In 2014, the count was 7,260 warheads in the United States and 7,500 in Russia (Kristiensen, 2013). From the beginning, the viewer is shown Gen. Ripper’s “shoot first, ask questions later” approach to war. Gen. Ripper’s attitude is apparent as he initiates and nuclear attack, what is now known to be a Presidential authorization, as a preemptive measure. Gen. Ripper’s attitude of pre-emption is shared by Gen. LeMay when he says, “If I see that the Russians are amassing their planes for an attack . . . I'm going to knock the shit out of them before they take off the ground.” With Gen. Ripper’s actions, the viewer sees a play on the devolution of authority.
Turgidson: Plan R is an emergency war plan in which a lower echelon commander may order nuclear retaliation after a sneak attack if the normal chain of command is disrupted. You approved it, sir. You must remember. Surely you must recall, sir, when Senator Buford made that big hassle about our deterrent lacking credibility. The idea was for Plan R to be a sort of retaliatory safeguard.
Mufley: A safeguard?
Turgidson: I admit the human element seems to have failed us here. But the idea was to discourage the Russkies from any hope that they could knock out Washington, and yourself, sir, as part of a general sneak attack, and escape retaliation because of lack of proper command and control.
Mufley: A safeguard?
Turgidson: I admit the human element seems to have failed us here. But the idea was to discourage the Russkies from any hope that they could knock out Washington, and yourself, sir, as part of a general sneak attack, and escape retaliation because of lack of proper command and control.
This devolution began with President Mufley’s authorization of the “safeguard” and continues through Gen. Ripper until Major Kong receives the orders to commence Plan R. All control is lost by both the President and General Ripper when the bombers CRM-114 radio is turned off and only a code known to Gen. Ripper can be received by the bombers. The loss of control is finalized by the Gen. Ripper’s suicide.
Many aspects of the films contributed to several reviews dubbing the film a “black comedy”, from the use of sexual innuendos to the mise-en-scène of the film. Stanley Kubrick chose to shoot the film in black and white because it was reminiscent of an old newsreel. Kubrick also chose to keep the sets very simple. The viewer is only shown three major sets in the film; the war room, Gen. Ripper’s office, and Major Kong’s B-52. In each of these sets, the viewer is given a film noir perspective. Kubrick uses a film noir perspective to portray to the viewer a sense of fatality. Mutually Assured Destruction, or MAD, is a strategic doctrine still used in military strategy and national security policies when two or more opposing forces would cause the complete annihilation of both the attacker and defender (Parrington, 1997). However, Gen. Ripper’s preemptive measures of [strike now, ask later] are used as deterrence of mutually assured destruction. Additionally, some directors have used film noir to emphasize sexual motivations between characters and scenes. Using film noir to depict a sense of fatality, Kubrick is foreshadowing in the film. In the final scene of Dr. Strangelove, the clamps holding the nuclear missile will not release, they can only be released manually. Thus, Major Kong, in one last attempt to fend of the Russkies and communism from the United States of America, volunteers to release the clamps. The camera follows Major Kong on the missiles carrying the inscriptions “Hi There” and “Dear John” until impact. Closing the film with an explosion or what is the climax, or orgasm, to the opening scene.
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Discussing Mutually Assured Destruction in the War Room / IMDB
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Dr. Strangelove is filled with sexual innuendos and symbols as the auteur introduces nuclear deterrence and Mutually Assured Destruction during the Cold War. Many of the sexual allegories are used to make a dark, yet very real dilemma appealing to the audience. The satire of this film noir shows using those sexual allegories and Kubrick’s decision to shoo the film in black and white. Dr. Strangelove or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb proves that satire in very real situations can be used and received by the audience.
Kong rides the bomb / YouTube