MAD. Mutual Assured Destruction

The themes of war and irrational behavior of the 1964 film Dr. Strangelove, by Stanley Kubrick, clearly reflect international issues that came afloat during the aftermath of World War II regarding the nuclear and the military build up race between the Soviet Union and the United States with a very strong touch of black humor. Kubrick uses comedy to represent and criticize the erratic militaristic approach of the time that could have lead to, as the scientist and mathematician John von Neumann proposed, " the strategy of mutual assured destruction." In Kubrick's film, leaders of both countries governed in fear of each others military intentions in the world. Through the characters of the film, we see how misinformed the military and government personnel of the United States was regarding the Soviet Union. The biases each part held about policies, culture, society, and capabilities increased tensions and finally brought the complete nuclear destruction of the earth. In Dr. Strangelove, Kubrick plays with realistic settings and amplified reality of characters with the use of satire as an artistic criticism of the unnecessary military actions in the decades following World War II.

Although the elements of Mise-en-Scène such as airplanes, military costumes, military and government buildings appear very real, the military characters and Dr. Strangelove created by Kubrick are, in essence, out of their minds. While the settings and costumes provide realism to the movie, the actions played by the military characters are, in my opinion, not less real, but an amplification of the actual over reactive military and military industrial complex of the United States at the time. The character of Brigadier General Jack D. Ripper a paranoid ultranationalist, played by Sterling Hayden, seems to be inspired by military leaders and advisors of the time whom where very nationalistic and many times opted for drastic military interventions; in addition, his name clearly establishes a connection to the England's serial killer Jack the Ripper. Dr. Strangelove, a sinister nazi scientist now at the service of president Merkin Muffley, seems to be a representation of former Nazi scientists whom worked for the Manhattan project and other advisors in the government such as, Wernher Von Braun, Edward Teller, and Herman Khan.
The character of the president appears to be somewhat more rational than the military personnel, but still displays many weaknesses in his inability to take control of the situations effectively. President Merkin Muffley character seems to resemble some of the president Harry Truman's idiosyncrasies and issues that defined his administration in relation to nuclear interventions and his military-government command conflict with general McArthur during the Korean War. Although some may disagree, I find the character of the Major T.J Kong represents the work of simple military men whom find pride in military action, but fail to know or don't have the power to question the military orders that not only put their lives at risk, but also fail to make the United States any safer. In general, I find all the characters to be an amplification of the reality lived during the early years of the policy of containment first articulated by the US diplomat George F. Kennan.

Finally, I find Kubrick's film very interesting in the way realistic settings contrast with the amplified representation of real leaders and political groups of the time. Dr. Stragelove, in my opinion, is an artistic and humanistic film charged with black humor in response to the chaotic idea of nuclear weapons and an unintended world destruction that stems from the military build up between countries. Even though there was an idea to bring some slapstick humor into the movie captured in the removed cream pie fight sequence, it appears to me that for Kubrick, Dr. Strangelove needed to make a strong and serious argument in the viewers minds. This would explain the black humor and why it was used constantly through out the film.