The War Room
Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned To Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964)
Introduction
Stanley Kubrick’s great political satire Dr. Strangelove… is truly one of the gems of the cinema. This film released in 1964 retains its relevance not only due to its biting satire, which exposes the inherent absurdity of man, but to the technical wizardry that makes the film appear modern for the most part. This film is ideally placed at the height of the cold war between the bastion of capitalism in the West, The United States Of America and the bastion of so called communist ideals in the East, The Soviet Union and the eastern Bloc. These two super powers came to blows following the end of the second world war in 1945 and a new battle was waged on ideological grounds to prove which ideal of economic organization was superior. This battle manifested itself in technological advancement which is the feature of any high civilization. The creative thrust of these two super powers centred on two activities: the stockpile of arms which was a sign of military might and the space race which sought to delve into the frontiers beyond the earth’s atmosphere. This masterpiece (Dr. Strangelove…) centres on the arms race whereas Kubrick’s other masterpiece 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) was influenced by the space race. Military might was not determined solely by automatic weapons and a standing army but by nuclear weapons and the two nations increased their stockpiles of nuclear warheads to such overwhelming proportions that the world sat on the edge of their seats in anticipation of the end of the world. All it would take was a spark to ignite Armageddon. This spark came in the form of the Cuban missile crisis (1962) where it was reported that the soviets had placed nuclear warheads in Cuba; it could have been interpreted as a symbolic threat or because Cuba, which was now an ally of the Soviet Union following its revolution of 1959, had exposed the weakness in US sovereignty in the West. The world waited with bated breath however the Soviets eventually pulled out. This was why Kubrick at first intended the film to be of a serious nature for this would accurately reflect the mood felt by most at the time; there were few people who saw the bright side of it all. It is all credit to the genius of Kubrick in adapting the film as a satire that most people who watched the film would have their fears laid to rest. The questions the film asks are: Could man really be this foolish? Is not the Cold War a figment of our imaginations or simply a game being played by the politicians? Should we really be worried about the possible extinction of man? It is known that politicians prey on the fears and joys of the people which is why they can appear godlike to the weak minded however this film exposes the absurdity of politics like no other film before for politics now is caught up in one of its usual games which has deadly results. It has finally reached the point where politicians can no longer cast any spells for the conundrums (hollow ideological rhetoric) they initially created to befuddle the people have taken on a life of their own. By taking on a life of its own these conundrums which are no more than conspiracy theories have finally come to light into an actual reality where it is no longer a conundrum but a startling fact. Conspiracy theories are never to be proven by facts; they simply keep the weak minds endlessly buzzing with excitement. This phenomenon of politics which arose since the social foundation of man was laid is supposed to be merely a hoax right? It’s just supposed to be the means to discredit one’s opponent right? There is nothing more to it right? The greatness in this film lies in the fact that those who follow the politicians seem to have embraced the rhetoric and acted upon it. Once the followers follow the lines of conspiracy theory chaos normally ensues and the absurdity of man is revealed. The only other phenomenon to generate such absurdity is religion. In the beginning of man’s social existence as distinct from the apes religion and politics were intertwined. It was eventually separated with the dawn of philosophy. It is still a serious matter for we have seen where the followers of politics have given into the conspiracy theories of the politicians and their lackeys to the point where genocide or mass murder of various political supporters has occurred. Every lover of politics should watch this film and understand the inherent absurdity of the profession. This film takes the comic side which highlights the absurdity and folly of the concept of politics and the politicians and their followers who are doomed to embrace it; it is through the comic side that we can appreciate the ideological base of politics however the destructive actions that follow when the supporters follow through on the falsehoods created by the politicians always has a serious edge. The true comedy lies in watching the politicians try and control a falsehood (negative perception of the communist) that is about to result in mankind’s destruction. The event is not based on fact since it never occurred and we can truly appreciate the joke. It is a joke because it can never happen. Of course it can happen as long as politicians are around.
This film’s political satire is interspersed with references to sexual impotency which is to reflect the inability of the lead characters in the War Room to change the course of the conundrum they have created. This comic film’s upbeat nature is diffused amongst all sectors involved in it’s creation from the musical score to the magnificent performance given by Peter Sellers and George C. Scott and Sterling Hayden. Sellers is famous for portraying three characters: the president of the United States, Dr. Strangelove and group captain Mandrake. He was to play the head pilot, Major Kong, of Hayden’s Wing however he broke his leg and was unable to complete shooting. He was replaced by relatively unknown Texan Slim Pickens who is featured in the most famous scene where he rides the nuclear warhead like a horse or cowboy ‘Yahoo, yee haw’ as it plummets to the earth. George C. Scott plays the effervescent General Buck Turgidson and Sterling Hayden plays the deranged General Jack Ripper who issues the order for his wing to launch plan attack r which will see the US drop nuclear bombs on the Soviets. General Ripper believes that the soviets are corrupting the’ precious bodily fluids’ of Americans.
The film centres on the prospect of nuclear war as General ripper issues the go code which authorizes his wing to drop bombs on the soviets. Captain Mandrake must try and convince General ripper to recall the planes as he is the only one who knows the code. As the president and his aides drastically try to resolve the situation by creating a hotline with Premier Kissoff, head of the Soviet Union, it is clear that some things are even beyond the control of the gods for in this film the Soviets have created a retaliatory doomsday device which is set to automatically detonate should they be engaged by a nuclear attack. This doomsday device will unleash such radioactive mayhem that mankind will be annihilated. It remains to be seen if Dr. Strangelove can provide the necessary solution to this dilemma.
Dr. Strangelove was nominated for 4 Academy Awards: Best film, Best Actor (Sellers), Best Screenplay adaptation (Stanley Kubrick, Peter George and Terry Southern) and Best Director (Stanley Kubrick). It won none but was still a commercial and critical success. The fictional war room in this film has entered the lexicon of the American people. Everyone knows that after President Reagan was sworn in he asked his chief of staff to see the War room but was told, unfortunately, that there is no war room. With contemporary filmgoers who will experience the film for the first time, the scenes in the plane where the crew are about to release the nuclear warhead with the musical score suggesting that this is where the action takes place, will resonate more initially. If, as a contemporary, you watch the film a second time you will gradually come to appreciate the other levels of the film.
In this review I will discuss the absurdity of man as presented in this film; the famous role of Peter Sellers which reveals three of the levels of the film, the prospective fourth performance would have seen Sellers present at all four levels; the war room discussion with Dr. Strangelove and his solution to the problem. In this film you can see the germs of Kubrick’s evolutionary themes. This thematic element was to be developed in 2001: A Space Odyssey however it still merits a discussion here. This element of political control was an extension of his earlier masterpiece Paths of Glory (1957).
The Absurdity of Man’s Social Organization
It is clear that man strives for unity in this world however boundaries become established and conflict ensues. The idealist love to speak of world peace or paradise which is silly when one considers that man is prone to establish boundaries that will secure his livelihood. In the beginning of the world man was communal until private property was established through religion and politics; there were some men who initially, through some form of inspiration, were able to elevate their standing above the rabble and hence were able to secure land unto themselves with the help of people who they could sway to their ways. These people became the priests and soldiers who helped to defend his emerging kingdom and eventually this one individual was able to demand tribute from the citizens in the particular geographical space. After it became established that he was the leader he had to maintain his power either through coercion or persuasion and we all know the effects of coercion which remains relevant to this day. Persuasion however is where the art of politics emerged as it is more sophisticated since you are able to bend people to your will etc and are able to prey on their fears and joys ensuring that in the end it is you they beseech when in need. There arises a dilemma when another individual has assumed control over a territory of equal size and economic strength. The two of you inevitably must come to blows since you have to prove to your followers that it is your right to rule all around since it was ordained by heaven. This is the basis of political organization and conflict between political opponents. Dr. Strangelove…. exposes the various paradigm shifts in the struggle. Firstly there are the foot soldiers and their generals who carry out the orders and secondly there are the politicians/leaders who issue these said orders. This great film highlights these levels and another in the form of Dr. Strangelove(which means perverted love) himself who is an ex nazi official who is the president’s advisor. Depending on how weak the leader is this advisor may be the one who is actually in command. This is clear by the end of the film where Strangelove remains silent until the end and there is a famous shot of him in the shadows waiting on a opportune moment to strike and reveal his dastardly plan.
This film opens with General Jack Ripper (named after the famed killer of prostitutes) who issues the go ahead to launch the wing attack plan R on the Soviets which is known as condition red. He shuts off the base and all form of communication with the outside and tells his soldiers not to trust anyone even senior officers since he believes the Communists have infiltrated America’s social fabric. This ultra fanaticism is given texture by his famous denunciation of communism- although it is never made clear what a communist (commie) is, which is a brilliant stroke by Kubrick since the politics between the superiors of the average man is so far removed from him that he can only identify a communist by what he hears from the mouth of the politician- when Ripper says to Captain Mandrake, after he discovers that Mandrake has exposed his faulty order after discovering that there is no attack by the communists since civilian broad casting is vibrant on radio (Ripper ordered all radios to be impounded. This man was not insane) , ‘Do you recall what Clomenceau said about war(Mandrake doesn’t know)? He said war was too important to be left to the generals. When he said that, fifty years ago, he might have been right. But today war is too important to be left to the politicians. They have neither the time, the training, nor the inclination for strategic thought. I can no longer sit back and allow communist infiltration, communist indoctrination, communist subversion, and the international communist conspiracy to sap and impurify all of our precious bodily fluids.’ Lol. That is his justification and all credit to Sterling Hayden who delivered this with a straight face and with such serious gestures; you know this must be his reality. I would need repeated takes to deliver such statements. In any case he does stress one important point about the role of generals in warfare. Since time immemorial it was the leaders who would spur the army on since most kings or emperors would be present on or in close proximity to the battlefield directing the troops. General and leader were almost intertwined however as civilization develops the roles become separated and the politicians only hold the power to thrust the generals into war who wage the combat in anyway they choose where before the leader would direct the troops or oversea their progress on the battlefield. General Ripper is in a position where the means of defence are at his disposal and he is unable to do anything for he has to receive a go ahead from the President who he claims has no inclination for strategic thought. In his mind the cold war is superficial when waged on ideological grounds when it should be fought like other wars on the battle field which is the customary approach since time immemorial. The cold war did seem superficial however since when nations become rich the unproductive sector of the government, which is now enriched by taxes proceeds to build its armed forces to overwhelming proportions in the likelihood that there may be war or they wish to expand their territory. At least Hitler made no pretensions. If you build up your armed forces you wage war and expand or else you are wasting taxpayers’ dollars and running the country in the red. The Cold War was distinct for war was not waged between the Soviets and the US but between these two superpowers and smaller states in order to either preserve their ideal or overturn an opposing one. They failed miserably: the US in Vietnam trying to preserve the so called democratic/capitalist virtues of Southern Vietnam and the Soviets trying to retain support of their socialist afghan neighbors, the Democratic republic of Afghanistan party, who were supposedly being encroached upon by rebels supported by capitalist nations such as the US. These wars were wasteful since they were empty as they only sought to preserve ideals and there was no economic justification for the waste of such money. At least in Iraq it is clearly about oil reserves. General Ripper is determined that war be declared since what is the point of all these weapons and tough talk. If it were Napoleon or Hitler with those weapons war would be declared instantly.
Ripper only errs in his justification for war which is the need to preserve purity of essence of his bodily fluids. It may seem incredulous however the purity of essence concept employed by Ripper suggests the extent of prejudice in certain societies to the point where they want to have nothing to do with their neighbours due to fears of corruption. In modern day democracies it is common for opposing factions to deny any sort of affiliation with their rivals; if you were to mention to the supporter of a particular political party that you support the enemy they would dismiss you, probably in a violent manner for they refuse to be corrupted by the ideals of the enemy believing firmly in the rights of their masters to rule. In most nations support for a political party becomes inherited through family units. The Soviet Union crumbled because its affiliates never aspired to their ideals and were won over by the West. Several nations of the eastern bloc never gave them the right to rule and this was ever present in their urge to secede from the soviets. In any case Ripper’s views may seem insane and extra but it is not uncommon when one considers the fanaticism of some political supporters. Ripper believes in the virtue of capitalist production in America which has its basis set on the principle of private property. This not only applies to Ripper for we see the same bias in the dim witted Colonel Bat guano (bat feces) who is escorting Mandrake off the premises after some slight civil strife between Ripper’s men and his squadron. His biases are evident as he shoots off the door to Ripper’s office since he evidently believes that Mandrake is a commie. When Mandrake is desperate to get in contact with the president through a payphone to give him the recall code for the planes on ripper’s wing and asks the colonel to get coins from the coca cola machine so as to complete the call here is what the colonel says, ‘Ok I’m gonna get your money for you. But you know what’s gonna happen to you if you can’t get the president of the United States on the phone?’ ‘What?’ asks Mandrake. ‘You’re going to have to answer to the Coca Cola company.’ He shoots the machine and is sprayed by juice which is a sexual reference to healthy ejaculation or an easing of tension.
In the War Room the President, Merkin Muffley (name derived from references to female pubic area which is to highlight his impotence in the face of disaster. He was originally intended to be portrayed as an asthmatic throughout the film although when we first see him he is blowing his nose), and his generals try and resolve the situation. The politicians, as usual, are on a holiday in this time of crisis as the president is informed ‘The Secretary of State is in Vietnam, The secretary of defense is in Laos and the Vice President is in Mexico City. We can establish contact with them at any time. The undersecretaries are here.’ General Buck Turgidson (George C. Scott) is the main source of information for the president and he delights in probabilities and facts although there are times when he clearly supports the thrust made by Ripper who exceeded his authority in launching the attack since that is all generals know: warfare. The president however is clearly a helpless leader and does not have all the facts straight for politicians have become so hapless in warfare that they have to be informed word for word by the generals whereas previously the politician would have been required to have some knowledge of warfare since defense is one of the prerogatives of a leader. He however has no knowledge but in the eyes of the public the modern day politician only has to give the impression that he knows what is going on. They come on television and proclaim the death of an enemy of the American people but never had a thing to do with it and this is why the security sector of developed nations seem autonomous and this creates the possibility of them exceeding authority. If they exceed authority then it is possible that this can be turned into a political advantage and this is where the character of Dr. Strangelove comes in. ( I will discuss him later). The president seems to be unaware of a certain provision in Plan R which was exploited by General Ripper which, as General Buck explains,
‘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 has been disrupted. You approved it sir. You must remember. Surely you must recall, sir, when Senator Beaufort made that big hassle about our deterrent lacking credibility. The idea was for Plan r to be a sort of retaliatory safeguard.’ ‘A safeguard?’ (How ironic). ‘I admit that the human element has failed us here but the idea was to discourage the Ruskies from any hope that they could knock out Washington and yourself in a sneak attack and escape retaliation because of lack of proper command and control.’
This is another absurdity associated with the bloated bureaucracy now present in modern day governments where the leader is unaware of certain provisions in an act which he approves for his secretaries come to him with bills and say ‘Sir this requires your signature’ and he signs it without examining the provision since there are so much acts to sign. With an intellectual or enlightened leader this cannot occur and so I agree with Plato in The Republic that society requires philosophers to be leaders. Even when the parliament or congress is lively it is normally political rhetoric so it is no wonder the president does not remember and when he has to sign off on the bill he signs and moves on to the next completely unaware of what he has just signed. The president decides to include the Russian ambassador, De Sadesky (Peter Bull), in the meeting so that he can get in contact with Premier Kissoff for he disagrees with the approach of General Buck that they should take advantage of the situation and launch an all out attack on Russia for even if the Russians were to attack the US would only experience ‘modest civilian casualties’. The president states that ‘it is the avowed policy of this country never to strike first with nuclear weapons’ although as General Buck informs that policy has been ‘invalidated’ by General Ripper. The Ambassador represents the absurdity in Russia’s policy he is introduced demanding fresh fish ‘Your eggs are they fresh (Yes) I will have poached eggs and bring me some Cigars, Havana cigar.’ Try one of these Jamaican cigars ambassador’ I do not support the work of imperialist stooges’ ‘Only Commie stooges uh.’ This merely exposes the fact these superpowers are imperial whether they like it or not especially as the values that once saw them ascend to the top have evaporated in the joy of consumption as opposed to production. General Buck and the Ambassador get into a scuffle and yet another absurd statement is made, this time by the President, ‘Gentlemen you cannot fight in here this is the war room.’ The Ambassador allows them to get Kissof online who is also on holiday ‘You would never have found him in the office. Our premier is a man of the people but he is also a man if you know what I mean.’ They inform the drunken premier of the impending disaster and as they try to resolve the issue the Ambassador informs the president of the doomsday machine which will annihilate the world should it be activated by other enemy attack or any attempt made to ‘untrigger it’.
‘What a load of commie bull,’ says Tugidson 'Our studies show that even the worst fallout (from radioactivity) is down to a safe level after two weeks.’ ‘You obviously have never heard of cobalt thorium G. Cobalt thorium G has a radioactive half life of 93 years.You take, say, 50 H bombs in the 100 megaton range and jacket them with cobalt thorium G when they are exploded they will produce a doomsday shroud, a lethal cloud of radioactivity which will encircle the earth for 93 years.’ ‘This is absolute madness ambassador,’ says the president, ‘Why should you build such a thing?’ ‘There are those who fought against it. But we could not keep up with the cost involved in the arms race, the space race and the peace race. At the same time our people grumbled for more nylons and more washing machines. Our doomsday scheme cost us just a small fraction of what we have been spending on defense in a single year. The deciding factor was when we learned your country was working on similar lines and we were afraid of a doomsday gap.’ ‘This is preposterous I’ve never approved of anything like that.’ ‘Our source was the New York Times.’ Another absurdity since politics relies on conspiracy theories to remain relevant. The president asks, ‘Dr. Strangelove do we have anything like that in the works?’ Strangelove responds, ‘Under the authority granted me as head of weapons research and development . I commissioned last year a study of this project by the Bland (weak, insipid etc) corporation (this hints of corruption which is the point here. Strangelove must have commissioned as a means to destroy the world). Based on the findings of the report my conclusion was that this idea was not a practical deterrent for reasons which at this moment must be all too obvious.’ You mean it is possible for them to have built such a thing?’ ‘Mr. President, the technology required is easily within the means of even the smallest nuclear power. It requires only the will to do so.’ ‘But how is it possible for this thing to be triggered automatically and yet also impossible to untrigger?’ ‘Mr. President It is not only possible, it is essential. That is the whole idea of the machine you know. Deterrence is the art of producing in the mind of the enemy the fear of attack. And so because of the automated and irrevocable decision making process which rules out human meddling the doomsday machine is terrifying and simple to understand and completely credible and convincing.’ ‘ But this is fantastic Strangelove how can it be triggered automatically?’ ‘It is remarkably simple to do that. When you merely wish to bury bombs there is no limit to the size. After that they are connected to a gigantic complex of computers. Now then a specific and clearly defined set of circumstances under which the bombs are to be exploded is programmed into a tape memory bank. A single roll of tape can store all the information. The whole point of the doomsday machine is lost if you keep it a secret. Why didn’t you tell the world?’ Ambassador: 'It was to be announced at the party congress on Monday. As you know the premier loves surprises.’ (A little late for that) Man has created a machine independent of his will and now they are powerless to influence it in any way as it has taken on a life of its own. This theme was developed more pointedly in 2001: A Space Odyssey.
There is not much to be said of the members of General Ripper’s wing of B-52 bombers who are to offload the nuclear bomb apart from the mannerisms of Major Kong. They are supposed to carry out the orders of their superiors and nothing more however it shows how inactive this wing really is since according to the narration they should be on patrol 24 hours a day. The tax payers are paying for them to be idle and enjoy playboy magazines. There was a scene that was axed where the members of the crew question General ripper’s order of plan attack R however a vestige of it still remains when the character, Lt. Zothar Zogg (James Earl Jones), asks ,’ Major Kong, is it possible that this is some kind of loyalty test? You know give the go code and then recall to see who would actually go.’ ‘Aint nobody ever got the go code yet,’ says Kong ‘And Old Ripper wouldn’t be giving us Plan R unless them ruskies had already clobbered Washington.’ When Major Kong rides the atomic bomb to the earth, in his famous yahoo scene, that will activate world destruction it just shows who are on the actual frontline blindly following the will of their leaders. This can also be seen with the soldiers on Ripper’s base who obey without hesitation the orders of their general.
Absurdity therefore has manifested itself on all levels and has eroded man’s social organization and this is why the film remains timeless as a political treatise particularly if you constantly hear in the news of the US trying to coerce smaller nuclear powers such as Iran and North Korea to disable their arms. This film does not only seem relevant but will forever remain relevant.
The multi faceted performance of Peter Sellers and the manifest layers of man’s absurdity and progress along evolutionary lines
The multifaceted performance by Peter Sellers in this film reveals how absurdity from the top percolates to the bottom and it also presents a scale of humanity on the evolutionary ladder from a physical and intellectual perspective. The leaders at top represent the intellectual perspective and the lower levels represent the more physical approach. Sellers plays three characters: group captain mandrake, US President Merkin Muffley and the enigmatic Dr. Strangelove. As mentioned before he was scheduled to play Major Kong however he broke his leg during shooting. This would have made this film complete however it does not matter since all the levels are established throughout. At the base there are the foot soldiers who carry out the orders and we are given the view of one plane of the B52 bomber unit headed by Major Kong. This base level reflects how politics is carried out on the ground level. Since dawn of mankind’s societies the soldiers would brutalize opponents on behalf of the chief; it still continues to day which is why to overcome a government you have to defeat the armed forces however as Lt. Zogg said it could be a loyalty test, the order to initiate plan attack R. this is their lot in life to follow and execute the will of their superiors. They are usually the more physical set or representative of labour for without labour society cannot grow. Labour without direction however in modern societies leads to unproductive employment. In any case they are the laboring force. The next level is represented by captain mandrake who has obviously graduated from the laboring position to bureaucratic centre on the army base where he sits behind a desk and is second to General Ripper. It is clear he has some experience of hard labour when ripper asks him if he was ever a POW (prisoner of war); he answers in the affirmative for he was a pow in World War 2 under the Japanese where he was forced to lay tracks for the railroad. ‘They do make bloody good cameras’ though says mandrake. He has also reached a position where he can challenge the wisdom of his superiors which in this case is general ripper. He does this when he realizes that civilian broadcasting is live on air which would negate the possibility, according to the general, that the Russians have launched their attack on the US. He is the only one in position to question ripper who tries to coax him with the question of purity of essence. He is an intermediate character between the foot soldier and the general and his transition to a weakened physical state is clear when he is asked to load ripper’s gun with bullets and he says, ‘Jack I’d love to come you see but the string in my leg is gone.’ The next level are the generals who only warm their chair and give out orders being so far removed from the heat of battle however the mode of operation still rests with their judgment and when that is faulty the defense of the country is in doubt. There are two generals in this film: General Ripper and General Buck Turgidson. These generals are responsible for defense and are obviously close to the seat of power as an aide to president which is why ripper could have exceeded his authority. General Buck is a man portrayed as someone who, through subtlety, questions the president’s decisions as leader especially when he invites the Russian ambassador to sit in on the war room discussion and when he refuses to seize on Ripper’s initiative to wipe out the Russians. These are the two points on which Buck questions the president probably aware of his weakness. I quoted above how he hints that the president must recall the provisions of plan r which is to expose his capabilities as a leader. He is one who enjoys a comfortable lifestyle being with the only female in the film, a playboy model, and does not seem at all interested in his work initially since he is able to live off the labour of his foot soldiers. A theme brought across in Kubrick’s earlier masterpiece Paths of Glory (1957). General Ripper however takes his job seriously which is why he issues the go code to the b52 bombers. His theory of purity of essence and the corruption of bodily fluids, made mostly of water, by the soviets reflects how vested he is in the cold war struggle. General Buck seems to appreciate that ripper exceeded his authority since the trust generated by the Cold War allows him to shed some dust and oil his rusty joints. After the generals is the president who represents another stage of development being on a higher position of leadership yet with the weakest physical constitution; when Schwarzenegger made fun of Obama’s physique during the ‘Yes We Can' campaign you understand what the film is trying to say. The president however relies exclusively on the advice given to him by his staff; he is incapable of fathoming the depth of all his decisions and must place faith in his subordinates whether he likes it or not for the richer a nation gets in this modern day the more bloated does the unproductive sector of government become having enriched it self on the spoil of the workers, exploited by the capitalist class, who generate surplus value. The Government bureaucracy becomes bloated when a nation is rich; it is inevitable. The president therefore cannot comprehend the entire network and can only rely on advice handed to him and this is where Strangelove comes in as the president’s advisor. He is initially head of weapons research and development but as we shall see in his 100 year plan he provides the solution for a new earth. Dr. Strangelove therefore represents the highest level of leadership yet the one with the weakest physical constitution although a high level of intellectual development. His right hand with the black glove has a life of its own (modeled off a character in the masterpiece Metropolis (1927)) and he lies almost handicapped in his wheel chair. He is almost amazed near the end when he can walk ‘Mein Fuhrer, I can walk.’ It seems amazing to him yet he has been able to arrange the birth of a new civilization which I will now discuss in the final section. Well how does this relate to the evolutionary debate? In Charles Darwin's famous and influential work The Descent of Man (1871) he quotes an authority: ‘Dr. Beddoe further believes that wherever a “race attains its maximum of physical development, it rises highest in energy and moral vigour.”’ Darwin says again , ‘It has been often been objected to such views as the foregoing, that man is one of the most helpless and defenceless creatures in the world; and that during his early and less well-developed condition would have been still more helpless… We should, however bear in mind that an animal possessing great size, strength, and ferocity, and which like the gorilla, could defend itself from all enemies, would not perhaps have become social; and this would most effectually have checked the acquirement of the higher mental qualities, such as sympathy and love of his fellows. Hence it might have been an immense advantage to man to have sprung from some comparatively weak creature.’ If you do not agree with Darwin why do we rely so much on technology and our mental faculties to rule this world? Although Strangelove (or perverted love) is the weakest of the leaders he at the same time represents the highest level one can attain in leadership.
Dr. Strangelove (Peter Sellers)
Dr. Strangelove’s 100 year plan for a new earth in the face of destruction (hence the title)
Despite the recall code being issued, after Ripper’s suicide and, subsequently, Mandrake deciphering Ripper’s combination, the plane with Major Kong is still on course to drop its nuclear war head on Russia due to its communication being disabled after a heat seeking missile attack from the Russian base which would not have enabled it to receive the recall code. The celebrations of the politicians and the army staff is short lived as this one plane is about to activate the doomsday machine. The politicians are in a quandary for this will mean the end of the world as they know it. They need to turn this into a political advantage however in order to do this you need an intellect on a higher level and this is why they turn to Dr. Strangelove. Who is this Dr. Strangelove? He is a German who fled after the defeat of the Nazis in World War 2. ‘Strangelove what kind of a name is that? That ain't no Kraut name’ asks General Buck. Stainsey (stain) says, ‘He changed it when he became a citizen. It used to be Merkwurdichliebe.’ He constantly refers to his fuhrer or Adolf Hitler in his ranting especially as he is close to his plan to control a new world order. His talk of life underground after the doomsday machine will trigger automatically and eliminate all life on earth above could be said to be influenced by Hitler’s last days in his bunker as the defeat of his forces seemed imminent. Hitler was one of those politicians that fought from within without any understanding of war on the ground level however he did have grandiose ambitions for a new world order. Well this is how Strangelove will be able to create a new world order which can be said to be based on how Hitler lived out his final days in the bunker. The sinister nature of Dr. Strangelove is exhibited in a shot in the film where he remains silent in the shadows smoking in the wheel chair after the politicians are unable to control the one plane that will bring about the destruction of life on earth above.
‘Mr. President, ‘ says Strangelove, ‘ I would not rule out the chance to preserve a nucleus of human specimens . It would be quite easy at the bottom of some of our deeper mine shafts. The radioactivity would never penetrate a mine some thousands of feet deep. And in a matter of weeks, sufficient improvements in dwelling space could easily be provided.’ ‘How long would you have to stay down there?’ asks the president. ‘Well that’s you know cobalt thorium g. I would think possibly 100 years. You mean people could actually stay down there for a hundred years?’ ‘It would not be difficult Mein fuhrer, sorry Mr. President; nuclear reactors could provide power almost indefinitely. Greenhouse could maintain plant life. Animals could be bred and slaughtered (emphasis on slaughtered to emphasise the Nazi’s love for killing). A quick survey would have to be made of all the available mine sites in the country. But I would guess a dwelling space for a several hundred thousand of our people could easily be provided.’ ‘ Well I would hate to have to decide(the president shows he does not have the will to act) who stays up and who goes down. Well that would not be necessary Mr. President. It could easily be accomplished with a computer and the computer could be set and programmed to accept factors from youth, health, sexual fertility, intelligence and a cross section of necessary skills (labour). Of course it would be absolutely vital that our top government and military men be included (as there will be a reversion to the old days it is essential that the government be preserved being at the top and the lower classes would, as always, have to suffer the threat of annihilation. Somewhat similar to Hitler’s last days and his plans for a master race) to foster and impart the required principles of leadership and tradition ( he struggles with his hand who has a life of its own. It can be speculated that Hitler lives on in that arm). Naturally they would breed prodigiously there would be much time and little to do. But with the proper breeding techniques and a ratio of, say, ten females to each male they could then work their way back to the present gross national product within say 20 years.’ ‘But look here doctor. Wouldn’t this nucleus of survivors be so grief stricken and anguished that they… well, envy dead and not want to go on living?’ ‘When they go down into the mine everyone will still be alive. There would be no shocking memories and the prevailing emotion will be of nostalgia for those left behind combined with a spirit of bold curiosity for the future ahead. General Buck asks Strangelove whether the ‘ten female to one man ratio necessitate the abandonment of the so called monogamous sexual relationship?’ ‘ Regrettably yes’ But it is a sacrifice required for the future of the human race. I hasten to add that since each man will be required to do prodigious service along these lines the women will have to be selected for their sexual characteristics (evolutionary notion of natural selection) which will have to be of a highly stimulating nature.’
The discussion now shifts to the old possibility of Soviet attack once they are in the mine shafts and must not, as Buck says, ‘allow a mine shaft gap’, in arms between the Soviets and the US. The ambassador who leaves hastily in preparation of going underground and waging a new style of battle, still ensures that he takes pictures of the maps in the war room.
‘Sir I have a plan… Mein Fuhrer. I can walk.’ This must be a reference to the fact that Hitler is still allowed to live out his plans for world domination through Dr. Strangelove.
There is then a shift to the destruction that follows above with the song ‘We’ll meet again’ thereby resuming the same old absurdity which never seems to end.
This film is a timeless masterpiece.
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