The War Game
- 1966
- 48m
IMDb RATING
7.9/10
7.5K
YOUR RATING
A docudrama depicting a hypothetical nuclear attack on Britain.A docudrama depicting a hypothetical nuclear attack on Britain.A docudrama depicting a hypothetical nuclear attack on Britain.
- Won 1 Oscar
- 5 wins total
Dave Baldwin
- Schoolmaster
- (uncredited)
- …
Kathy Staff
- Interviewee
- (uncredited)
Peter Watkins
- Documentist
- (uncredited)
- Director
- Writer
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaAfter it won an Oscar for Documentary Feature, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences changed the eligibility rules for the category.
- GoofsLight can be seen reflecting off a woman's "broken" teeth.
- Quotes
Scientist: Technically and intellectually, we are living in an atomic age. Emotionally, we are still living in the Stone Age. The Aztecs on their feast days would sacrifice 20,000 men to their gods in the belief that this would keep the universe on its proper course. We feel superior to them.
- Alternate versionsSome prints replace the stills of Lyndon B. Johnson and Alexey Kosygin with stills of the White House and the Red Square
- ConnectionsFeatured in Peter Watkins Reflects on 'The War Game' and the Media (1983)
- SoundtracksStille Nacht, heilige Nacht (Silent Night, Holy Night)
(uncredited)
Music by Franz Xaver Gruber
Lyrics by Joseph Mohr
Played on phonograph at Dover refugee compound
Featured review
I saw The War Game thanks to my local branch of CND in 1979 when they showed it in a hall in our town. My mum was vehemently anti-communist so I had to sneak out to see it. The local paper kicked up at 14-year olds being encouraged to see an 'X' film. Was it worth the fuss? Yes, without a doubt. I had already seen Watkin's definitive 'Culloden' earlier that year and was bowled over by the documentary style applied to a drama, but The War Game surpassed even that. I will never forget the scenes of the helmeted English bobbies shooting people in the head to put them out of their misery, or the bucket full of wedding rings or most of all, the line of kids being asked what they wanted to be when they grew up and the replies of 'nuffink.'
For me, that summed up the futility of war, nuclear or otherwise.
'Threads' is good, but 'The War Game' is still the best portrayal of a nuclear attack on Britain ever made. It should be shown more often.
For me, that summed up the futility of war, nuclear or otherwise.
'Threads' is good, but 'The War Game' is still the best portrayal of a nuclear attack on Britain ever made. It should be shown more often.
- glennwalsh44
- Sep 2, 2004
- Permalink
Details
- Runtime48 minutes
- Color
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 1.37 : 1
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