Analyzing "Dr. Strangelove"
Analyzing "Dr. Strangelove"
General Jack Ripper introduced the knowledge of a Russian plot to rob American citizens of their precious bodily fluids to us. Believing that he is the only man to stop this conspiracy he takes matters into his own hands and breeches national security through a loophole in the nuclear safety precautions. General Ripper orders all B-52’s under his command to proceed to their Russian targets. Unfortunately the U.S is completely unaware of the ‘Doomsday Devise.’ If an U.S. bomb is to hit a Soviet Union sight then the whole world will reach a state of universal Armageddon. The film cleverly cuts to the bomb-group commanders in a sealed off Air-Force command base. A huge graphic display of the locations of U.S. B-52’s in Russia light with the process they make to their targets. The president and his staff of Advisers try to brake the hold General Ripper has over the planes to stop nuclear world destruction.
President Muffley deliberates with the wheel chair bound German nuclear scientist, Dr. Strangelove, a former Nazi who works on weapon strategies. Strangelove is unable to control his arm, which jumps to attention at ‘inopportune’ moments.
After the suicide of General Ripper, British exchange officer, Lionel Mandrake, is able to take control of the base and discover the code to recall the B-52 bombers. Yet one bomber had their radio damaged and was unreachable. Resistant to admit defeat the crew of the “Leper Colony” flies under the radar of Soviets and miraculously reaches a target. Yet unluckily, the missile doors are jammed and Major Kong, the head of the bomber crew, must unlock the doors by hot wiring the door controls and finally riding the bomb down to target ground. The movie ends with several shots of mushroom clouds set to the sound of World War II music, “We’ll Meet Again.”
General Jack D. Ripper is one of the foremost characters that spring to mind when thinking of complex characters. He is one of the most adamant in voicing his degrading opinions of women. He believes that water fluoridation is a “Communist plot to sap and impurify our precious bodily fluids.” When Ripper is asked by Mandrake as to how he came develop this theory he replies (rather embarrassed) “during the physical act of making...