Dr. Strangelove - Strange Indeed

“Dr. Strangelove” is a dark war comedy about nuclear war and its effect. When General Ripper commands a nuclear attack on the Soviet Union, he plunges the governments of both the United States and Russia into a panic. As the bombers ordered to release bombs at points all over the Soviet Union close in on their targets, the leaders of each country try desperately to get through to stop the bomber pilots. The many ridiculous situations created by General Ripper’s actions, as well as the actions of many of the other characters satirize subjects such as war, sex, and the government and military.

            War and sex are satirized together as though they were one and the same. At the opening of the film there are two air force planes flying near each other. They are connected by a long pipe, which is presumably refueling the other plane; however the soft, sensual music that is playing suggests that the planes are engaged in a much more sordid act. The names of many of the characters also contain sexual connotations, such as General Jack D. Ripper and General Turgidson. General Ripper shares a name with notorious murderer and sexual predator Jack the Ripper. General Buck Turgidson’s name contains the word “turgid” which means swollen or inflated, and is oftentimes used to refer to the male genitalia. Oddly enough, he does not seem to be particularly interested in the act of physical sex, dismissing his lovely secretary in order to go to the war room. This suggests that Buck may see war as a twisted type of substitute for sexual pleasure. Buck’s secretary is the only woman in the film, which, once again, suggests that many of the characters may approach war as a type of fulfillment much in the way others would view sex.

            Another criticism of war is seen with the pilots of Major Kong’s bomber plane. They seem to realize the absurdity of what they are being ordered to do, however they follow their orders to the best of their ability even after their plane is hit by a missile. Major Kong goes so far as to climb onto a bomb to rewire the release door, which sends him plummeting to the Earth straddling the bomb like a rodeo cowboy riding a bull. The irrational actions of the plane crew satirize the mere act of war. It also emphasizes that the men who are actually out fighting are pawns and are seen as having little consequence or importance by the government and military forces which deploy them.

            “Dr. Strangelove” also satirizes the government as being run by a group of people suffering from inferiority complexes who seek power to make themselves feel superior. General Ripper reveals that he had a realization of the evils of communism during a sexual encounter in which he was unable to perform. I believe that everything he has done since then has been done to assert his masculinity, including going as far as to order the destruction of the communist nation he blames for his problems. Wheelchair bound, Dr. Strangelove makes up for his physical disability by creating weapons of mass destruction. Even the President has some problems. He spends much of his time on the phone with Russia’s Premier Dmitri Kisov. Their conversation is ridiculous and reminiscent of two women arguing over petty matters. Kisov feels the need to assert himself, much in the same way as Ripper. He builds a “Doomsday Machine” which he had planned to reveal and impress and terrify the world with. The fact that these men all use war as a way to inflate other’s perceptions of them is absurd and causes war to seem needless. It also causes the viewer to question the reasons behind war and international conflict.

I feel that the purpose of “Dr. Strangelove” is to warn people against engaging in war, or any type of conflict for trivial personal reasons, as war is a very grave matter. It portrays both government officials and military leaders as having personal agendas and using war as a substitute for sexual pleasure. I don't think this movie could be considered a comedy at all, if not for the unlikely situational humor in this film and the ridiculous personal quirks of each character.