Dr. Strangelove...an seemingly 'strange' film

The film Dr. Stranglove for me was much harder to figure out than the other films we have watched and dissected. This film did however, strongly include symbolism, cinematography, lighting, and mise en scene. The mise en scene in the film had a great impact on the storyline, since the entire film was done in black and white. This I believe gave the film the needs to flourish in other aspects of the scenes rather than color. The cinematography in the film was supportive of the storyline in such instances as the war room scenes, when the camera was up high above the round table to show how many authorities were in this room making the decisions that was going to affect the entire world. In some ways, all of those people seem like a lot of people, but when comparing it to the entire world and the rest of the people that would be affected by their actions, they seem like a small small group of people. The lighting in the film was significant because since the film was done in black and white, the lighting that then created the shadows and highlighted areas was very important and its what made each scene unique. And lastly, the mise en scene was very important because it mostly is what made this film a comedy. The members of the crew on the B-52 who were wearing a cowboy hat and acting like they were at a rodeo, gave comedy to the seemingly serious situation. Also, the secretary at the beginning of the film, who was in her swimming suit and was laying out beneath the sun lamps, was a good and funny use of the set, props, and the costumes that were used in the film.

"The Bomb"

In Stillman’s article, Henry Kissinger quotes about technology and the fear of war with an opponent. “Technology is volatile. The advantage of surprise can be overwhelming...Every country lives with the nightmare that even if it puts forth its best effects its survival may be jeopardized by a technological breakthrough on the part of its opponent...(Stillman)”. This makes me think of how General Riper called for this attack to happen against the Soviet Union and he had no idea about the Doomsday Bomb that could kill the entire planet. He simply wanted to start this attack but he was not thinking about how the repercussions might affect himself and everyone else in the world.

Paranoid Bucky

I also found it interesting how all of the characters in the film seemed to think that General Bucky was crazy and over exaggerating when he was talking about spy’s from the Soviet Union. “In the film, General ‘Buck’ Turgidson (George C. Scott) is portrayed as paranoid over the threat of Soviet spying by diplomats with hidden cameras (‘tiny equiptment’). In the end it turns out that his fears were not without reason” (Stillman). Although I did think throughout the entire movie that General Bucky was a little strange, he did end up knowing a lot about the subject at hand in the war room, and his gut feelings were correct in the end.

The War Room silence

Another scene which occurred in the war room of the film, was when some of the men that were contemplating what to do with the situation at hand. The men started arguing and fighting around the room and someone made a comment about how there should be no fighting in the war room. "A group of men haggling over morality and strategy in a "War Room" is gloomily comic enough without an American General and Russian Ambassador wrestling with each other and then being admonished by the President that their behavior violates the room's dignity-"Gentlemen! Such behavior in the War Room" (Richardson). I think this is a very ironic part of the film and it makes for comic relief in this seemingly serious part of the film.

Overall, I really enjoyed this movie while I was watching it, but I really did have a hard time figuring out why certain things were done in the film, and what the symbolism was behind it.

Kubrick, Stanley, dir. Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned To Stop Worrying and Love the

Bomb. 1964. Columbia Pictures, 2009.

Stillman, Grant. "Two of the MaDdest Scientists." Film History. 20 (2008): 487-500.

Web. 17 May. 2010.

Richardson, Jack. "'Strangelove' and 'the Silence.'" The Hudson Review. 17.2 (1964): 250-255.

Web. 17 May. 2010.