From the 1940s through the 1980s, no threat caused more despair and terror in the world than the possibility of nuclear war. Nowhere was this more evident than in the large number of nuclear war films that cropped up during the last half of Cold War. Filled with terrifying imagery and frightening scenarios, these films were so effective in conveying the horrors of nuclear war that one of them– the Day After— was instrumental in helping bring an end to an arms race that was spiraling out of control in the 1980s.
Today we thankfully no longer live in an era in which full-scale global nuclear war is imminent. However, because nukes still exist, it’s important that we not fall into the illusion that nuclear war films from the Cold War are no longer relevant. Otherwise, the world will see another generation start up a new arms race, blissfully ignorant of the destruction that a nuclear holocaust can cause.
To help spread awareness about these movies, I have listed what I consider the best 15 nuclear war films from the past 40 years. Watch them, share them, talk about them, and debate them. But whatever you do, don’t dismiss them as outdated relics from the past. The Cold War may be over, but some of its dangers still exist.
15. When the Wind Blows
Based on a book of the same name by Raymond Briggs, When the Wind Blows is a 1986 animated film about a dopey, out of touch middle aged English couple who naively prepare for nuclear war by following the so-called British “civil defense” handbook of nuclear war survival. I personally have a few issues with this film (it’s just a tad manipulative). However, for all my misgivings, there’s no arguing its powerful message: that surviving a nuclear war is neither possible nor desirable.
14. This is Not a Test
What would you do if you learned the world would end in a second? How would you react? Would you react with fatalism? Panic? Hope of survival? Bitterness? Or suicide? This is a chilling, frightening scenario that many people played out hundreds, if not thousands of times in their minds during the span of the Cold War. This is Not a Test was one of the first to explore it in a character study of a group of motorists who are told by a highway patrolman that the bomb is about to drop. Younger viewers will most likely not get the psychological tension in this film; older viewers will get it all too well.
13. Terminator 2
Many people consider Terminator 2 just a sci-fi action flick, but at heart this movie and the one before it was an expression of the deep angst that many of those who grew up in the Cold War felt about the future. In the 1980s, the threat of nuclear war had become such an oppressive cloud lingering over everyone, it seemed inevitable. James Cameron was the first filmmaker to challenge the fatalism of the times with the idea that nuclear war wasn’t the destiny of mankind. He was also the first to show in graphic detail what being caught in a nuclear blast would be like, in a famous scene (the destruction of LA) that still terrifies to this day.
12. Barefoot Gen
Like When the Wind Blows, Barefoot Gen is an animated film based on a book. In this case, it was based on the real life personal account of manga artist, Keiji Nakazawa, who survived the bombing of Hiroshima as a young child and witnessed the immediate horrific after effects it had on his family and village. Don’t let the fact that this is a cartoon fool you; although there are bits of Disney-like sentimentalism, it has one of the most unwavering, horrific in-your-face scenes of nuclear destruction ever shown in cinema. Only the infamous “destruction of Los Angeles” sequence in Terminator 2 tops it.
11. The Atomic Cafe
Using nothing but news reels, government footage, and instructional films from the Cold War era, this 1982 movie presents a history of the development of the atomic bomb, as well as calls into the question the absurdity of so called “civil defense”, those measures that were designed to help citizens survive a nuclear war. Especially singled out for ridicule is the infamous “Duck and Cover” short, the school instructional film from the 1950s that showed children how to shield themselves from an atomic blast.
10. Fail Safe
Often touted as the “serious” Dr. Strangelove, Fail Safe is a 1964 Cold War thriller about a mechanical failure that causes a group of bombers to believe that they must launch a nuclear attack on Moscow. The duration of the film focuses on the President’s and military’s desperate attempts to call them back. Absurd third act aside (I won’t spoil it for you), this film will chill you to the bone, especially if you’re old enough to have remembered the Cuban Missile Crisis and how close the world was to destruction.
9. Testament
Testment is one of those movies that seems to create a contentious reaction amongst people for many reasons, one of them being that it didn’t follow the typical formula that most other nuclear war films did at the time. Rather than go the horror route of showing the physical effects of nuclear war on a major city within the range of a nuclear blast, it focused on a quiet, idyllic suburban town so remote from the nearest nuke detonation that it physically survives WW3 intact as if nothing had happened.
But there lies the brilliance of the film. Because so many anti-nuke films focused on the devastating effects of nuclear war on major metropolitan cities, people in so-called “small towns” like the one in Testament began to grow complacent about it by comforting themselves with the illusion that they were safe as long as they didn’t live in or near a military target. Testament did an effective job of showing that it didn’t matter where you were if nuclear war happened– death would come to you whether you were at ground zero or not.
8. Miracle Mile
Becoming a cult classic with each passing year, Miracle Mile stars Anthony Edwards as a musician who may have met the love of his life one day. Problem is, he just may have met her on the eve of destruction. On the surface, Miracle Mile plays out as a thriller and dark comedy, but like This is Not a Test, it also plays out the horrific scenario of what the last hours on earth might be like if everyone knew they had only a few hours to live. Needless to say, it wouldn’t be pretty.
7. Special Bulletin
Shot completely in the style of a fake “special report” newscast on the “RBS Network”, Special Bulletin is about a group of domestic terrorists who hold the city of Charleston, South Carolina hostage with a home-made nuclear bomb. The irony about this 1983 TV program is that at the time it was made, the scenario of terrorists being able to craft and explode a home-made nuclear device inside of the United States was almost far-fetched to the point of sci-fi. However, in the wake of 9/11 and threats of dirty bombs, Special Bulletin has taken on the most frightening relevance out of any of the films here.
6. Dr. Strangelove: Or How I Learned to Stop Worrying And Loved the Bomb
For a long time, people dealt with the threat of nuclear war by convincing themselves that as long as sane, intelligent people were at the helm and proper protocols put in place to anticipate accidents, there would be nothing to worry about. Dr. Strangelove was the first movie to challenge that notion. Sure, there was no reason to be concerned about nuclear war as long as the military-industrial complex was securely run by competent men and women. But who’s to say that one of them couldn’t snap, slip through protocols, and start World War 3? Dr. Strangelove may have been a comedy, but the scenario it presented and the questions it raised were all too frighteningly plausible.
5. Countdown to Looking Glass
Following in the footsteps of Special Bulletin, this 1984 Canadian-produced TV drama used a faux newscast and footage to play out the scenario of the United States and Soviet Union going to war over the Middle East after a terrorist bombing. The last ten minutes are not only terrifying, but haunting, and the footage of one of the reporters caught in the thick of fighting on a US carrier is probably one of the most chilling moments ever depicted on television.
4. Threads
Often considered the UK’s answer to the US’ The Day After (see below), Threads is a drama about the brutal physical effects of nuclear war, not just in the weeks immediately after but in the decades following. It’s considered by many to be the best film in this genre, not only for its unrelentlessly graphic depiction of nuclear war but for many memorable scenes, including that of a terrified woman wetting herself in terror at the sight of a mushroom cloud looming in the distance ahead.
3. The Day After
Probably one of the most controversial TV movies ever made in the United States, 1983’s The Day After outraged many viewers on both the pro and anti side of disarmament. Even to this day, critics angrily pit it against Threads, which they consider the better film. Both movies are excellent, but The Day After edges out Threads for me because the latter’s approach of terrorizing viewers probably left its viewers more emotionally scarred than contemplative about the arms race. The Day After may have indeed taken a less graphic approach in its depiction of nuclear war, but at least when the film ended viewers weren’t so traumatized that they couldn’t think about the film’s message, let alone debate it.
2. Nuclear War: A Guide to Armageddon
Produced by the same filmmaker of Threads, this 1982 English television program used a very revolutionary approach in its tactic of spreading awareness about nuclear war. Rather than present a fictionalized drama, it showed in a very scientific, objective manner precisely what the devastating effects of a nuclear detonation would be on parts of London if a bomb dropped over St. Paul’s Cathedral. It also showed the futility of trying to survive a nuclear war using bomb shelters and other civil defense measures. Because this program used facts rather than storytelling to convey its message, there was very little opponents of disarmament could dismiss as mere propaganda or claim was manipulative, making it a more effective messenger than its sister production, Threads.
1. The War Game
If very few people know about this movie, it’s with good reason: this 1965 British faux documentary of the effects of a bomb on a major city was considered so disturbing, it was actually banned from British television for 20 years. This is one of those acts of censorship that in retrospect may have been prudent: even by today’s standards, this film is incredibly shocking, so I can imagine that had it been seen in a more innocent and naive time, it would’ve completely driven people over the edge to the point of either suicide or despair. On the downside, it does get a bit heavy handed and falls prey to accusations of being manipulative and propagandistic. On the upside, this is one of the few anti-nukes film to truly inform the viewer about what really happens in an atomic or nuclear blast.
