'Dr Strangelove Or: How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Love The Bomb' review by Captain Raptor

'Dr Strangelove Or: How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Love The Bomb' review by Jake Boyle

Reviewing a classic is somewhat of a fool's errand - if you like it, you're another indistinguishable voice in the masses; if you dislike it, you've just annoyed a lot of people and open yourself up to cries of being a philistine. Maybe that's a little over-dramatic. Either way, I noticed that the oldest film I've reviewed on here was made in 1982, and while I certainly intend to focus on contemporary cinema, it's always a good idea to broaden one's horizons. Which brings us to now.

Nuclear war isn't the most obvious topic of choice for a comedy, but the silliness of the jokes are nicely complemented by the dark undertones, cancelling out the threat of becoming either too bleak or too jejune. The satirisation of Cold War politics works equally well, especially when the film reaches its loopy final scene. It's shot very atmospherically, with lots of murky darkness as a further reminder of the sombre subject matter amidst all the tomfoolery (although I'm open to the possibility that maybe I perceive it like this because I'm accustomed to high definition cameras, and, well, colour). Stanley Kubrick's penchant for the unusual, the unsettling or the just flat-out crazy can also be felt across the film, from character names such as General Jack D. Ripper to a running joke about Soviets trying to poison America's "precious bodily fluids". This all goes some way to heighten the experience but can't entirely compensate for a substantial flaw; a lot of time Dr Strangelove just isn't funny. It's a very witty film (I found it similar to Monty Python at times) with some truly funny moments, but they come in patches, and there are swathes of the film (particularly those set among Slim Pickens' B-52 crew) that can't really raise a smile.

That being said, whilst not always funny, for the majority of its duration Dr Strangelove is at the very least amusing or entertaining. In combination with a charming and well-written script, this is largely due to incredibly energetic performances by Peter Sellers and particularly George C. Scott (which Kubrick notoriously fooled them into giving). Scott's mugging and shouting is incredibly watchable at all times and works well with the occasionally farcical script, and Sellers performs so distinctly in his three different roles that it wasn't until the credits that I knew which ones he was playing. Dr Strangelove himself is probably the finest of the three, a remarkably baffling character who veers from funny to frightening with great ease. It's a very emotionally removed comedy, with little sympathy or heart to the characters, which is just as well or it would be hard to laugh at them leading the world step-by-step to nuclear annihilation.

Dr Strangelove Or: How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Love The Bomb was a highly enjoyable film that's commendable both for its wit and its intelligence. At no point was it uproariously funny, but its a product of its time and as a satire it works splendidly. The absurdity of it all is highly amusing in and of itself, and Kubrick has managed to create a pleasing movie that's both dark and light-hearted at the same time. I wouldn't say that it's especially wonderful, and it's certainly not hilarious, but watching it was a positive experience and markedly different to most other films that I've seen.