Dr. Strangelove, by Stanley Kubrick

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In Dr. Strangelove, Stanley Kubrick took a serious issue and turned it into a political comedy. He was able to illustrate a satire of the hazardous notion of a nuclear war and the insane individuals who were coordinating it, and furthermore, addressed the issue of stereotyping. This movie was created in 1964; today in 2005, we still have nuclear weapons. Yes, the United States and other countries still have nuclear weapons, however, a question does arise, do we still have insane individuals coordinating war plans and security procedures? If you are expecting to find the answer in this essay, do not continue reading for that reason, the answer will not be found in this essay. The reason being is the answer needs to be realized and determined by every individual, not just me. However, if questioned that in Dr. Strangelove was there an individual who was insane and should he have not been placed in command of a military base, then I would have to answer yes there was such an individual. This individual was General Jack Ripper.

I think that it was not coincidental that Kubrick named this individual Jack Ripper, but purposely did so. The real Jack Ripper was a serial killer. Not only does the name fit with the character in Dr. Strangelove, but also the images and actions often associated with the serial killer. Silent and cruel attacks, nighttime, darkness and dense fog are a few images associated with the serial killer. In the movie General Ripper was in a dark office, he ordered Wing Attack Plan R to bombard the Soviet Union with a nuclear bomb before they could respond, and right before killing himself he was in a cloudy/smoky room. The Wing Attack Plan R is my analysis of the silent and cruel killings. The cloudy/smoky room is the dense fog. And finally the darkness of General Ripper’s office fits with the darkness image. What was the purpose of General Ripper when looking at the movie as a whole?

It is my analysis that Kurbrick was not just showing America the stupidity of nuclear war, but was also showing that the United States government often makes mistakes. One mistake, not just in the movie but in life, is the allocating of power to an individual who is not fit, whether mentally or physically, to have this power. When these individuals are allocated this power their actions can have a worldly consequence.

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