--- title: "Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb: the reviews" canonical: "https://film.one/film/dr-strangelove-or-how-i-learned-to-stop-worrying-and-love-the-bomb/reviews" title_page: "https://film.one/film/dr-strangelove-or-how-i-learned-to-stop-worrying-and-love-the-bomb" critics_score: 85 critics_reviews: 15 licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL." --- # Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964): what the critics said Critics' score 85 from 15 reviews: 14 positive, 0 mixed, 1 negative. Most critics regard this as one of Kubrick’s most fully achieved films. The praise clusters on two things: the decision to treat nuclear deterrence as black comedy rather than earnest thriller, and Peter Sellers’ three performances. Reviewers from the first release onward describe the same effect, laughter turning to dread as the plot follows its premise to the end, and those who return to it on re-release find it undated. George C. Scott and the War Room scenes also draw repeated mention. Dissent is narrow. Fourteen of fifteen reviews are positive, and the lone negative notice comes from The New York Times, which in 1964 called the premise a reckless science-fiction fabrication and objected to the film’s implied fatalism about the bomb, while still crediting the screenplay and performances. Sight and Sound is cooler than the rest, calling the film tough and uncompromising rather than delightful. Beyond that, reservations barely register. ## Radio Times — Tom Hutchinson Rating 5/5. Kubrick's ferocious Cold War satire makes viewers smile through gritted teeth as it spirals from gentle humour to surreal horror. Sellers' performances and the unsparing disgust with warlike instincts make it grimly comic. [Read the review](https://www.radiotimes.com/movie-guide/b-49khx9/dr-strangelove-or-how-i-learned-to-stop-worrying-and-love-the-bomb/) ## Time Out Rating 5/5. 21 October 2016. Kubrick's most perfectly realised film weds his cynical vision of technology and human stupidity with sparkling comedy. The result is scary, hilarious and nightmarishly beautiful, far more effective than anti-nuke documentaries. [Read the review](https://www.timeout.com/movies/dr-strangelove-or-how-i-learned-to-stop-worrying-and-love-the-bomb-1) ## Empire — Dorian Lynskey Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 1 January 2000. The critic praises Kubrick's decision to treat the absurd logic of nuclear deterrence as black comedy rather than earnest thriller, highlighting the film's lewd satire, innuendo and Peter Sellers' three standout performances. It notes the boldness of the bad taste even decades later and calls the result the film the subject deserved. [Read the review](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/dr-strangelove-learned-stop-worrying-love-bomb-review/) ## Los Angeles Times Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 10 July 1994. The piece reviews a new print of the film made from Kubrick's personal negative for its 30th anniversary re-release, finding it a more potent piece of filmmaking than three decades prior. It singles out the film's ability to be at once funny, chilling, and intellectually engaging through controlled comic exaggeration of the script and acting. [Read the review](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1994-07-10-ca-14039-story.html) ## RogerEbert.com — Roger Ebert Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 28 October 1994. The critic finds the film remarkably fresh and undated after 30 years, praising its clear-eyed, irreverent and dangerous satire. He singles out the brilliant screenplay and performances, particularly George C. Scott's facial expressions and the way the film follows its premise to its logical, annihilating conclusion. [Read the review](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/dr-strangelove-or-how-i-learned-to-stop-worrying-and-love-the-bomb-1994) ## The Guardian — Peter Bradshaw Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 15 May 2019. The critic calls the film a queasy nuclear holocaust satire whose power has not diminished on re-release. Sellers' multi-role performance, especially as the ex-Nazi Strangelove, is singled out for praise alongside the absurd war-room satire and final mushroom-cloud sequence. [Read the review](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2019/may/15/dr-strangelove-or-how-i-learned-to-stop-worrying-and-love-the-bomb-review-stanley-kubrick-peter-sellers) ## The Hollywood Reporter — James Powers Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 15 January 1964. The critic calls the film baleful and brilliant, predicting it will enthrall most viewers as a huge success for its truthful humor about nuclear anxiety. Kubrick is praised for skillfully using comedy to convey a serious point, with standout performances from Peter Sellers in three roles and strong technical contributions. [Read the review](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/dr-strangelove-review-1964-movie-1171802/) ## The New Yorker — Brendan Gill Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 25 January 1964. The critic calls it one of the best pictures seen in years and a brilliant nightmare comedy that induces laughter at the prospect of nuclear extinction. He singles out the sharp satire, factual details, and Peter Sellers' multiple performances for particular praise. [Read the review](https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/1964/02/01/to-die-laughing) ## The Telegraph Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 12 December 2014. The review highlights the film's surreal Cold War comedy of errors and Peter Sellers' brilliant triple performance. It notes that the satire on warmongering machismo retains its bite decades later. [Read the review](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/film/filmreviews/11287027/Dr-Strangelove-review.html) ## Variety — Dave Kaufman Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 21 January 1964. The review praises Kubrick for skillfully turning a sensitive nuclear holocaust topic into a sharply satirical comedy with suspense and laughs. It highlights Peter Sellers' excellent trio of roles and George C. Scott's strong performance as standout elements. [Read the review](https://variety.com/1964/film/reviews/dr-strangelove-or-how-i-learned-to-stop-worrying-and-love-the-bomb-1200420465/) ## Slant Magazine — Eric Henderson Fi1m's normalised score 85/100 (inferred from the text). 16 June 2009. The review affirms the film's lasting status as a confirmation of Kubrick's reputation and the arrival of irreverent satire, highlighting its zippy, ruthless portrait of diplomatic insanity. It singles out the savage satire of the military-industrial complex through character performances and the iconic phallic imagery of the bomb-riding scene. [Read the review](https://www.slantmagazine.com/film/dr-strangelove-or-how-i-learned-to-stop-worrying-and-love-the-bomb/) ## Sight and Sound — Tom Milne Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). 15 May 2019. The critic calls the film a very tough yet hilariously funny and nightmarish work that makes no concessions. Kubrick is praised as a cunning director whose vision exposes the madness behind sane exteriors in power politics and ends with a bitter warning. [Read the review](https://www.bfi.org.uk/sight-and-sound/dr-strangelove-archive-review-mirthful-machiavellian-nightmare) ## The New York Times — Bosley Crowther Fi1m's normalised score 30/100 (inferred from the text). 16 February 1964. The critic finds the film a grimly sardonic exercise that ultimately supports the notion that nothing can be done about the bomb. He singles out its clever screenplay and strong performances but criticizes the reckless fabrication of a deadly science-fiction premise that passes belief. [Read the review](https://www.nytimes.com/1964/02/16/archives/hysterical-laughter-further-thoughts-on-dr-strangelove-and-its.html) ## The Playlist Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 29 June 2016. The ranking entry calls the film a brilliantly caustic and intelligent satire and the best example of cinematic gallows humour, praising Sellers' triple role and the way the film remains terrifying once the laughter fades. It highlights the quotable dialogue and the portrait of military madness. [Read the review](https://theplaylist.net/best-rest-every-stanley-kubrick-film-ranked-20160629/3/) ## Film Stories Fi1m's normalised score 85/100 (inferred from the text). 16 September 2024. The piece positions Dr. Strangelove as a blackly comic counterpoint to the straight dramatic Fail-Safe, noting how Kubrick transformed the source material into morbid gallows humour that has endured. It singles out the iconic War Room scenes and Sellers' multiple performances for their lasting cultural impact. [Read the review](https://filmstories.co.uk/features/stanley-kubrick-dr-strangelove-and-its-cold-war-rival-fail-safe/) --- © Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Our review: https://film.one/film/dr-strangelove-or-how-i-learned-to-stop-worrying-and-love-the-bomb.md