Film Forum

A chilling, Strangelovian nightmare plays out at a Titan II missile complex in Arkansas in September 1980. A deadly accident – from a falling socket puncturing the fuel tank of an intercontinental ballistic missile carrying the most powerful nuclear warhead ever built by the United States – leads Air Force personnel, weapon designers, and first responders to work  feverishly to prevent a calamitous explosion. Directed by Robert Kenner (FOOD, INC.) and based on the critically-acclaimed book by Eric Schlosser (Fast Food Nation), COMMAND AND CONTROL is a minute-by-minute account of this long-hidden story – much of it based on recently declassified documents that expose other freak accidents and near-misses. How do you manage weapons of mass destruction without being destroyed by them?

USA • 2016 • 92 MINS. • AMERICAN EXPERIENCE FILMS / PBS

The Museum of the Moving Image will present the series Meltdown: Nuclear Fears on Film, September 7 – 10.

Reviews

“Profiles a deadly machine of war gone awry. The film relives the feverish struggle to prevent a nuclear blast from the nation’s most powerful warhead. It’s a mix of documentary footage and vivid recreations.” 
– William J. Broad, The New York Times
 
“Still frighteningly relevant. Compelling.”
– William D. Hartung, The Nation
 
“Uncommonly gripping.” 
– Jeff Stein, Newsweek

“Both fascinating and utterly chilling.”
– Clark Collis, Entertainment Weekly

“Combines Cold War-era thriller with post-apocalyptic nightmare.” 
– Rolling Stone

 “Equal parts history lesson, cautionary tale and nerve-rattling thriller… delivering one propulsive bombshell after another while presenting a chilling vision of mankind’s helplessness to prevent its own destruction.”
– Nick Schager, Variety

“A high stakes documentary thriller”
– Katherine Keating, VICE

“A tense, scary tick-tock of a 1980 accident. The implications…are downright terrifying, and Kenner captures that intensity via candid interviews, stylish reconstructions, and urgent music. A brisk, efficient exploration of a troubling moment in our history.”
– Flavorwire