A new movie trending on Netflix may be tapping into growing anxiety about nuclear dangers.
A House of Dynamite by Oscar-winning director Kathryn Bigelow is currently #1 in Canada on the Netflix streaming service. You may know her previous films including The Hurt Locker and Zero Dark Thirty.
A House of Dynamite was produced without the involvement of the Pentagon – a conscious choice by Bigelow to maintain her independence.
The dark, tension-filled film has prompted a protest from the U.S. Department of War, accusing it of inaccuracies.
So, I asked Ottawa Citizen defence journalist David Pugliese – who is an expert in these technologies and nuclear weapons, to share his views on A House of Dynamite and to grade the film on its accuracy.
You can watch our conversation in the video included at the top of this newsletter.
The premise is frightening
The movie opens with a single missile being launched. It’s detected and tracked by surprised soldiers at American missile-interceptor base in Alaska. No country has declared war against the United States, and their satellites can’t determine the missile’s origin. All they know it was launched somewhere in East Asia – and it’s heading toward America. The rest of the film is about the reaction and decisions forced upon the President and military leaders as the missile closes in on Chicago.
As the missile travels through space at many times the speed of sound, the Alaskan base launches two interceptor missiles to try to shoot it down, like a bullet hitting a bullet.
[Spoiler alert!] One interceptor missile malfunctions mid-flight, and the other misses the target at the very last moment, leaving the U.S. unable to stop the attack.
After failing to shoot down the enemy missile, we watch as the military and political leaders, and the President, struggle to decide how to respond while the clock ticks down with minutes to impact. Should the President approve a nuclear counterattack and risk a nuclear war, or wait and see what happens?
Some people demand a nuclear response before it strikes, some run to their families, some pray, others leaf through binders of war plans looking for a solution.
High marks for A House of Dynamite for accuracy
Pugliese gives the film a positive grade for accuracy. In our conversation, he explains the technology that the United States has at its disposal – including undersea microphones that can listen for missiles launched by submarines and space-based radars to track missiles.
He gives high marks to scenes that portray the inability of the U.S. ground-based, midcourse missile defence system set up by President George W. Bush, the system that Canada declined to join back in 2005.
Pugliese says the film falters in the scenes depicting the President struggling to make a decision based on incomplete, and sometimes conflicting information from his military leadership and advisors.
Overall, Pugliese says A House of Dynamite is quite accurate, and suggests people also consider watching similar films such as The Day After and Dr. Strangelove.
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