@thenekom That's true in this day and age, but back then they didn't have any idea what contraflow was. I lived in that area when this movie was made and from firsthand experience, contraflow would have saved more people.
As the story goes Pres. Ronald Reagan, as an avid movie fan and a former actor, was given an advance screening of this movie at the White House before it aired on TV. According to reports, the movie left him deeply depressed. I wonder if seeing this film helped push him toward the easing of the tensions with the Soviet Union in the coming years of the 1980s.
Despite some serious lapses (people calmly watching a movie in a theater during an attack warning), and the common tendency of tv movies in the 80's towards maudlin soap opera, this was one of the most realistic depictions of a nuclear war to date. Unlike other nuke war movies, it showed how the buildup to such an event might occur, and how a massive nuclear exchange might play out. It was also the very first to show the effects of EMP.
This is for its time as real as you'll find it.. you would be a dummy to knock the realism of it being just the heartland of America. If the sparks were to fly you would be 10,ooo degrees in 30 seconds or less like a pizza.
The special effects of the mushroom clouds and the other nuclear related scenes were choppy as shit where in the hell is ILM(Indutrial Light and Magic)when we need them it would make this movie a whole lot worth watching.
@MrPeace2mind Yes, In a full blown nuclear exchange, The only places that will be spared from radiation,economic collapse, mass genocide, and an overall bad day will be South America.
''there're really gonna' do it. they schecked 'em''
''they pushed all the buttons''
''those are minuteman missles''
''this is sort of a test, sort of, right. a warning.''
john lithgow shakes head
''they're on their way to russia. they take about 30 minutes to reach their target''.
''so do theirs''
''general reinhart we have a major attack against the u.s. at this time. icbm's. numerous icbm's.....roger, understand. over 300 inbound at this time''.
I remember seeing this when it came out. The scene with the missles launching and people realizing that if missles are going up, missles are coming in. I really think this movie had a significant impact on people's understanding of what was at stake and really changed attitudes towars arms control
it still make me think about growing up back then it scares me to think that we as a civilization opened the deepest darkess secrets of the universe and what do we do we build weapons bombs but hey such as life
As bad as 300 ICBMs are, Russia would not have fired only (and I use the word "only" VERY loosely) 300 knowing a full USA counter-strike was coming. They would have fired everything they had at once, and by my rough math they had double what we had, and we had 1000 MMs at 6 bases ready to launch.
@daddydog97 Actually by the early 80's both the USSR and the USA both had close to around 20,000 warheads and thousands of delivery systems. If this exchange was real, then yes the russians would most likely launch a massive (in the hundreds) attack to carpet bomb, major cities, industrial centres and major military bases, as would the US. The USSR would have also nuked all of the US allies, which includes the UK and most of Europe. Within the first hour. More missles would have been fired.
I have watched this movie several times and it's still shocking each time I see it i believe if this really happened the entire country would be destroyed by fall out
I've said it earlier, and I'm saying it again here: Let this film, this scene in particular, along with Hiroshima and Nagasaki, serve as a warning to humanity of what NOT to do.
So was the Soviet Union and most of Asia and parts of Eastern Europe from radioactive dust fallout.... US Missles hit their targets there too and did terrible damage and death to millions... But in this movie they only focus on what happens in this small town near Kansas City, Missouri.
@CreepShowMovie You know, what I hate about nuclear powers is how they pretend to be like "Oh, if they nuke us, we'll nuke them", but you can clearly see how it's stated in this movie, that anyone who decides to use a nuclear weapon will live with it for the rest of their lives and they'll be the ones who ended the world, and the last days of their lives will be MISERABLE.
At 4:15 in this part, umm no you wouldn't have an empty 2 lanes going the other way, it would be full contraflow no doubt.
thenekom 2 months ago
@thenekom That's true in this day and age, but back then they didn't have any idea what contraflow was. I lived in that area when this movie was made and from firsthand experience, contraflow would have saved more people.
xxsweetshaftxx 1 week ago
"Do we have to go down there?"
Yes you damn well do unless you want to be radioactive vapour.
hotelmario510 7 months ago
Leave it to ppl at a football game to not know what the hell is going on
WarRogers 8 months ago
@6:45 "I think you better go downstairs, folks..."
Understatement of the millennium there...
snidelywhiplash 8 months ago
As the story goes Pres. Ronald Reagan, as an avid movie fan and a former actor, was given an advance screening of this movie at the White House before it aired on TV. According to reports, the movie left him deeply depressed. I wonder if seeing this film helped push him toward the easing of the tensions with the Soviet Union in the coming years of the 1980s.
chippewaman1975 10 months ago
impeccable manners. the world blew up and no-one said fuck. bravo!
hottscolland 10 months ago
"...over 300 missiles inbout now..."
haha, you better kiss your asses goodbye.
300 missiles... insane...
utar88utar 10 months ago
Despite some serious lapses (people calmly watching a movie in a theater during an attack warning), and the common tendency of tv movies in the 80's towards maudlin soap opera, this was one of the most realistic depictions of a nuclear war to date. Unlike other nuke war movies, it showed how the buildup to such an event might occur, and how a massive nuclear exchange might play out. It was also the very first to show the effects of EMP.
boy18inva 11 months ago
This is for its time as real as you'll find it.. you would be a dummy to knock the realism of it being just the heartland of America. If the sparks were to fly you would be 10,ooo degrees in 30 seconds or less like a pizza.
tobeyntucker 11 months ago
The special effects of the mushroom clouds and the other nuclear related scenes were choppy as shit where in the hell is ILM(Indutrial Light and Magic)when we need them it would make this movie a whole lot worth watching.
retroman84 1 year ago
@MrPeace2mind Yes, In a full blown nuclear exchange, The only places that will be spared from radiation,economic collapse, mass genocide, and an overall bad day will be South America.
22reTOYOTA 1 year ago
private cowboy !!!!
OFChughes 2 years ago
''there're really gonna' do it. they schecked 'em''
''they pushed all the buttons''
''those are minuteman missles''
''this is sort of a test, sort of, right. a warning.''
john lithgow shakes head
''they're on their way to russia. they take about 30 minutes to reach their target''.
''so do theirs''
''general reinhart we have a major attack against the u.s. at this time. icbm's. numerous icbm's.....roger, understand. over 300 inbound at this time''.
dale1966gto 2 years ago
holy mother of god.
that scene where jason robards - the older doctor who was caught on the freeway in his volvo - was out of our worst nightmares.
a nuclear blast will light up the sky and actually suck nuclear wind 150 miles away.
the first overhead blast was a nuclear airburst....the intial one that knocked out everyone's electricity.
to sum it up, i'd rather be vaporized in the original fireball than die of radiation poisoning over the next few days or weeks.
dale1966gto 2 years ago
i think we all, pray and hope this film, does not become Reality
davidhaythornthwaite 2 years ago
From 1:31-1:57, to paraphrase an old Pam Tillis song,
"Just call her CLEOPATRA, everybody, 'cause she's the QUEEN OF DA NILE (DENIAL!)"
knightryderrwn 2 years ago
I remember seeing this when it came out. The scene with the missles launching and people realizing that if missles are going up, missles are coming in. I really think this movie had a significant impact on people's understanding of what was at stake and really changed attitudes towars arms control
murdocj1 2 years ago
I agree.
johnny10301968 2 years ago
This is what Iran will do to us.
zenarcade64 2 years ago
it still make me think about growing up back then it scares me to think that we as a civilization opened the deepest darkess secrets of the universe and what do we do we build weapons bombs but hey such as life
pizzaman147 2 years ago
I saw this movie back when it aired in 83. . And I was scared to death .Let's all hope humanity will never make this kind of blunder in judgment!
trublu71 2 years ago
I prefer to believe in the best of man.
thanks51 2 years ago
Yeah, better pray to god it never happens....
antidiz 2 years ago
@antidiz That's for sure! Too horrible to imagine!
holmsatlarge 1 year ago
yep!
Shipmate1936 2 years ago
Fuck 300 icbms just one can take out N.Y.C.
johnny10301968 2 years ago
As bad as 300 ICBMs are, Russia would not have fired only (and I use the word "only" VERY loosely) 300 knowing a full USA counter-strike was coming. They would have fired everything they had at once, and by my rough math they had double what we had, and we had 1000 MMs at 6 bases ready to launch.
daddydog97 2 years ago
@daddydog97 Actually by the early 80's both the USSR and the USA both had close to around 20,000 warheads and thousands of delivery systems. If this exchange was real, then yes the russians would most likely launch a massive (in the hundreds) attack to carpet bomb, major cities, industrial centres and major military bases, as would the US. The USSR would have also nuked all of the US allies, which includes the UK and most of Europe. Within the first hour. More missles would have been fired.
123ATOM321 10 months ago
Only 300 missiles inbound at the moment (in the air, and being tracked). They forgot the one's they were still launching.
cm2dude 2 years ago
I have watched this movie several times and it's still shocking each time I see it i believe if this really happened the entire country would be destroyed by fall out
weirdguy75 2 years ago
Indeed.
alainpatrick73 2 years ago
shits depressing
thanks51 2 years ago
I've said it earlier, and I'm saying it again here: Let this film, this scene in particular, along with Hiroshima and Nagasaki, serve as a warning to humanity of what NOT to do.
daddydog97 3 years ago
Amen.
2degucitas 2 years ago
america is screwed in this movie
richard4195 3 years ago
So was the Soviet Union and most of Asia and parts of Eastern Europe from radioactive dust fallout.... US Missles hit their targets there too and did terrible damage and death to millions... But in this movie they only focus on what happens in this small town near Kansas City, Missouri.
CreepShowMovie 3 years ago
Was this the original airing?
Godzillaman 3 years ago
Yes.
CreepShowMovie 3 years ago
@CreepShowMovie You know, what I hate about nuclear powers is how they pretend to be like "Oh, if they nuke us, we'll nuke them", but you can clearly see how it's stated in this movie, that anyone who decides to use a nuclear weapon will live with it for the rest of their lives and they'll be the ones who ended the world, and the last days of their lives will be MISERABLE.
TechVideos2566 1 year ago
thank you, sherlock.
dale1966gto 2 years ago
The look on the little boys face is priceless.
SocialForces 3 years ago
lol, he knows what's going on.
On the other hand his sister's just thinking:
Duuuuh pretty light...
Then00b2000 2 years ago