Stanley Kubrick himself described Dr. Strangelove as a “nightmare comedy,” and it remains to this day one of the most outstanding films ever made about the Cold War. “What could be more absurd than the very idea of two mega powers willing to wipe out all human life because of an accident?” the celebrated director asked when speaking about his film. Shot at a time when fear of nuclear war gripped the world, Dr. Strangelove humorously reminds us that the “war rooms” where decisions taken may affect hundreds of millions of lives are far from being governed by sound reason, and that a catastrophe capable of annihilating the planet may be much closer than we think.

The story begins when a paranoid American general, claiming to be following orders from above, attempts to send his bomber fleet to strike a target in the Soviet Union. From that moment on, each new scene brings a turn of events increasingly more outrageous. With an unforgettable performance by Peter Sellers who plays three different characters at once, and a final scene that has gone down in the history of cinema, the film still maintains its relevance today in view of ongoing wars around the world.

BAFTA 1965

Best Film, Best British Film, Best Art Direction, UN Award