Released in 1964, Stanley Kubrick's Dr. Strangelove Or How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Love the Bomb is cinema in its finest art form. While the dominant Cold War theme is a bit dated now, the film serves a practical purpose today, namely to give a genuine feel of what conditions the world was under during that time for subsequent generations notwithstanding the strong undertones of dark humor. For the uninitiated, the basic story is that American Air Force General Jack D. Ripper (Sterling Hayden) sends the attack signal to an airborne bomber piloted by Maj. T.J. King Kong (Slim Pickens). Capt. Lionel Mandrake (Peter Sellers) realizes that Ripper is crazy and attempts to contact the President (Peter Sellers) who is barricaded in the war room with his advisors, the hawkish Gen. Buck Turgidson (George C. Scott) and ex-Nazi Dr. Strangelove (Peter Sellers) as well as the Russian ambassador (Peter Bull). As the men debate the merits of letting the chips fall or trying to stop the bomber, Maj. Kong is doing his best to fulfill his duties in nuclear combat, toe to toe with the Russkies. Kong eventually rides the big one down after freeing a jammed bomb. The casting was superb, with Sellers playing three parts (originally four until Pickens was cast as Kong which was much better). An interesting contrast is with the film Failsafe (1964) which has the same basic story yet is straight and in color, while Strangelove is back and white with dark comedy. The bottom line is that Dr. Strangelove Or How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Love the Bomb reaches the pinnacle in film as an art form and remains relevant today while other similar themed movies are outdated.