IMDb > Fail-Safe (1964)
Fail-Safe
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Fail-Safe (1964) More at IMDbPro »


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Overview

User Rating:
8.0/10   7,567 votes
MOVIEmeter: ?
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Director:
Writers:
Walter Bernstein (screenplay)
Eugene Burdick (novel) ...
(more)
Contact:
View company contact information for Fail-Safe on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
7 October 1964 (USA) more
Genre:
Tagline:
It will have you sitting on the brink of eternity!
Plot:
American planes are sent to deliver a nuclear attack on Moscow, but it's a mistake due to an electrical malfunction. Can all-out war be averted? full summary | full synopsis
Awards:
3 nominations more
User Comments:
Brilliant more (105 total)

Cast

  (in credits order) (verified as complete)
Dan O'Herlihy ... General Black

Walter Matthau ... Groeteschele

Frank Overton ... General Bogan
Edward Binns ... Colonel Grady
Fritz Weaver ... Colonel Cascio

Henry Fonda ... The President

Larry Hagman ... Buck
William Hansen ... Secretary Swenson
Russell Hardie ... General Stark
Russell Collins ... Knapp
Sorrell Booke ... Congressman Raskob
Nancy Berg ... Ilsa Wolfe

John Connell ... Thomas
Frank Simpson ... Sullivan
Hildy Parks ... Betty Black
Janet Ward ... Mrs. Grady

Dom DeLuise ... Sgt. Collins
Dana Elcar ... Foster
Stewart Germain ... Mr. Cascio
Louise Larabee ... Mrs. Cascio
Frieda Altman ... Jennie
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Geri Miller ... Go-go Dancer (uncredited)
Charles Tyner ... Jet fighter pilot (voice) (uncredited)
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Directed by
Sidney Lumet 
 
Writing credits
Walter Bernstein (screenplay)

Eugene Burdick (novel) &
Harvey Wheeler (novel)

Peter George  uncredited

Produced by
Charles H. Maguire .... associate producer
Max E. Youngstein .... producer
 
Cinematography by
Gerald Hirschfeld 
 
Film Editing by
Ralph Rosenblum 
 
Art Direction by
Albert Brenner 
 
Set Decoration by
J.C. Delaney  (as J.C. DeLaney)
 
Costume Design by
Anna Hill Johnstone 
 
Makeup Department
Harry Buchman .... makeup artist
 
Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Harry Falk .... assistant director (as Harry Falk Jr.)
 
Sound Department
Jack Fitzstephens .... sound editor
William Swift .... sound mixer
 
Camera and Electrical Department
Howard Fortune .... chief electrician
Edward Knott .... chief grip
Albert Taffet .... camera operator (as Al Taffett)
 
Other crew
Marguerite James .... continuity
Eugene Burdick .... script consultant (uncredited)
 
Crew believed to be complete


Production CompaniesDistributorsSpecial EffectsOther Companies
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Additional Details

Also Known As:
Angriffsziel Moskau (Austria) (West Germany) [de]
A prova di errore (Italy) [it]
Bombsäkert (Sweden) [sv]
Fail Safe - Feuer wird vom Himmel fallen (West Germany) [de]
Fejl-sikker (Denmark) [da]
Limite de Segurança (Brazil) [pt]
Missão Suicida (Portugal) [pt]
Point limite (France) [fr]
Pommin varjossa (Finland) [fi]
Punto límite (Spain) [es]
Synagermos thanatou (Greece) [el]
more
Runtime:
112 min
Country:
Language:
Aspect Ratio:
1.85 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Mono (RCA Sound Recording)

Fun Stuff

Trivia:
The "computer-generated" image on the control-room screen (including the map of the world, the planes and the explosions) was entirely drawn and animated by hand. more
Goofs:
Continuity: The end credits list General Black's wife as named Betty, but in the film he addresses her as Katie, and in a radio conversation, the President asks Black, "are Kathryn and the kids in New York?" more
Quotes:
US Ambassador: [over the phone] I can hear the sound of explosions from the north east. The sky is very bright. All lit up.
[phone melts and high pitched whining sound starts]
more
Movie Connections:
Featured in Fonda on Fonda (1992) (TV) more

FAQ

What is this movie's connection to Dr. Strangelove?
more
9 out of 12 people found the following comment useful.
Brilliant, 25 November 2001

I saw this movie via two instances of serendipity. First I just happened to be living in an area that offered The Disney Channel in the basic cable package (which is all I ever get) and that as a Bruce Springsteen fan I was excited that the Disney Channel was going to broadcast a special concert short on The Boss. Of course I'm an older Springsteen fan, so instead of staying up late to watch it I just put a tape in and pressed record. The next day I enjoyed the concert, but forgot to hit stop when it ended. What followed next was "Fail Safe". After a few minutes it caught my interest, and now is one of my favorite films.

I'm not sure if this was a precursor to "Strangelove" or vice versa, for they are both listed as 1964 releases. Oddly they both have the same texture about them which leads me to believe that there was more than coincidence in their respective productions. Both are piece de resistances in Cold War studies. The main sundering is that where "Strangelove" excels in parody, "Fail Safe" is rich in tension.

Of course an anxious film about nuclear war on the brink can easily invoke tension (remember "War Games"?), but this film exceeds a good plot. The filmmakers use a backdrop of soceital depravity to create neurasthenia and presentiment; as shown by the strange and erotic scene with Walter Matthau and the woman in the car (kind of a mass-sadisim, lust thing) and the implied domestic violence in the apartment scene. The movie is also deliciously philosophical (the clever "criminals and file clerks will survive" theory) as well as adroit phsycological character development for all the main characters.

The picture is also darkly filmed, remarkedly minimalist and low-budget as if to show the limits of technology, in order to symbolize the sophistry of our trust in it. BTW I love the Matthau character's (the political science professor) line as he explains the faults of missles that have no human intuition. "The rockets have the defect of their virtues" he says in explaining how they cannot make a conscious decision to abort after receiving an order. But the message in this film is clear; even if technology breaks down it is only a symptom of our doom, ultimately it is humans who are responsible.

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Message Boards

Discuss this movie with other users on IMDb message board for Fail-Safe (1964)
Recent Posts (updated daily)User
What if it happens today? u1000393
Prof. Groeteschele vs. Dr. Strangelove's Gen. Turgidson bhoover247
would any military man follow such an order? sceptikul
Would YOU sacrifice New York City ...? blubb06
was a much bigger impact on me than dr strangelove cexanatos
fail safe or strangelove? nosoapradio
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