The War Game (1966)

Very very predictable, including the post credit scene !!!

Best movie of this year hands down!

Good films always raise compelling questions, whether the format is fiction or documentary fact.

The movie really just wants to entertain people.

As drama it was first rate but as a serious look at the problem it was banal. Outside the handful of fruitcakes in the Pentagon and the Kremlin no one ever thought nuclear war would be a breeze.An entire film saying look here these nuclear bombs thingies are really rather unpleasant was crass. As children of the Cold War my generation assumed that if it kicked off nuclear style it would be goodnight Vienna for all of us and this would have told us nothing we could not already have guessedThe utter inescapable horror of nuclear war was after all its whole point and the strategy underpinning the MAD.doctrineThe film gloried in its own misery and failed to notice that rather than hastening Armageddon the Bomb has helped keep the peace in Europe for a record period of time. Furthermore the three central predictions of the film were all wrong. Perhaps 4 new nations acquired the bomb in 50 years not the 12 nations in 15 years it foretold. Nuclear stockpiles generally have been slashed not increased and most importantly there was no massive nuclear War by 1980.. None of this was due to the Jeremy Corbyn like shroud waving. of this film

Docudrama, science fiction, and educational broadcasting collide in Peter Watkins' cry against the horrors of nuclear war. The unsteady camera films the disturbing action, the haunting stares of burned survivors of the massive weapons some countries seem to throw at one another in a disgustingly nonchalant manner creep up onto your television. Children bloodied and burned, moans of pain surrounding the empty atmosphere. This is essentially a post apocalyptic world, and it is very much possible."The War Game" will remain relevant as long as war itself remains relevant; it is an important reminder of the great harm that violence upon another civilization will almost always leave to damaging civilian causalities. This is a sad, shocking fact of life that people often gloss over, but they will be reminded of its significance after viewing this masterpiece. The booming, monotone narration contrasts powerfully with the unspeakably horrific imagery that flickers before us. There is no need to go into detail, for this a film that must be seen by everyone. It is among the most realistic, brutal, and brilliant portrayals of a world at war that you will ever see.

The War Game, although it follows a hypothetical scenario, is one of the best documentary films ever made. Based on British government documents detailing the probable aftermath of a nuclear war, it is one of the most chilling indictments of nuclear warfare ever made.Unlike later films such as The Day After and Threads, the film does not rely on special effects to get its point across. Made on a minimal budget, it features little to no explosions or spectacle. Rather, we are given the stark vision of human suffering after a thermonuclear exchange.Although the film goes into disturbing detail about the physical toll of nuclear war, the most unnerving parts revolve around the psychological toll, particularly the breakdown of authority and the emergence of mass post-traumatic shock syndrome.Although the film has a definite stance, it benefits from a largely clinical delivery, with most of the polemic elements being used as bumpers between segments. Although the Cold War is over, this film will remain a classic both as a historical document and a warning to future generations.

I can recall the day when, in the 1970's here in Germany, my classmates and I went down to the cinema cellar of our big school, meanwhile flirting with the giggling girls, cracking jokes, trying to be cool - and watched this dramatized short documentary. Afterwards we were stunned and speechless, and in some of the faces you could read they had had tears during the show, deeply disturbed by the prospect that the pictures just seen could be our "future".As good pedagogics goes, in the following hour we had time to talk with our class teacher about our impressions, thoughts, and fears. I am still grateful for that teacher and his idea to show us this movie, because it was one milestone in me towards a nonviolent world view.After three decades I chanced to see this film again. It is as intense as ever and doesn't fail to show the audience that there won't be any winners of a nuclear war - ever. What bothers me is that nuclear deterrence still exists as a means of "defense". Don't think the menace is over.I strongly recommend this documentary to be seen in as many classes as possible. The movie shows drastically what the nuclear abominations of the Cold War could (and still can) do. Hopefully our children's generation will be able to live without the threat of complete annihilation by a monstrous nuclear arsenal. Films like "The War Game" can change the public opinion and help building a more peaceful world.