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Nuclear Age and the Cold War (11)
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23 SkidooJulian Biggs 1964 8 minThis short black-and-white film shows eerie scenes of a downtown without people. The effect is disturbing. The camera shoots familiar urban scenes, without a soul in sight: streets empty, buildings empty, yet everywhere there is evidence of recent life and activity. At the end of the film we learn what has happened. -
After the Big One: Nuclear War on the PrairiesBob Lower 1983 23 minThis film deals straightforwardly with the consequences of a nuclear attack for the Canadian Prairies. The Prairies are singled out because of their proximity to huge stockpiles of intercontinental ballistic missiles located in North Dakota. Scenes include a visit to a missile base and to an emergency government bunker in Manitoba. A doctor, a farmer and a civil defence coordinator provide different perspectives on nuclear war. Although the film focuses on one region, it provides a model for people everywhere who would like to know more about their own situation but don't know what questions to ask.
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The Big SnitRichard Condie 1985 9 minThis wonderful wacky animation film looks at two simultaneous conflicts, a macrocosm of global nuclear war and a microcosm of a domestic quarrel, and how each conflict is resolved. Filled with warmth and unexpectedly off-the-wall humour, the film leaves it to viewers to decide which Snit has really been the Big One.
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Canada at War, Part 12: V Was for Victory1962 27 minApril-August 1945. Hitler had said: 'Whoever lights the torch of war in Europe can wish for nothing but chaos.' By 1945, Germany is beaten. V-Day celebrations verge on the hysterical, but occupying armies uncover the staggering atrocities of Belsen, Auschwitz, and Buchenwald. Franklin D. Roosevelt dies. The world's first atomic bomb is dropped on Japan.
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Discussions in Bioethics: Happy BirthdayJefferson Lewis 1985 12 minOne of a series of short, open-ended dramas designed to stimulate discussion of values and ethics in relation to modern medical technology. A young couple's marriage is threatened over a decision as to whether the husband should accept a job researching poison gas for military purposes. The wife is adamantly opposed. Regardless of their decision, someone will take the job. Should one morally accept responsibility for the consequences?
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If You Love This PlanetTerre Nash 1982 25 minThe NFB’s 7th Academy-Award winning film. This short film is comprised of a lecture given to students by outspoken nuclear critic Dr. Helen Caldicott, president of Physicians for Social Responsibility in the USA. Her message is clear: disarmament cannot be postponed. Archival footage of the bombing of Hiroshima and images of its survivors seven months after the attack heighten the urgency of her message.
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No More HiroshimaMartin Duckworth 1984 25 minThis short documentary depicts the stories of two hibakusha, survivors of the 1945 atomic bomb attacks on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. This film follows them on their mission to New York as representatives of the Japanese Peace Movement at the second United Nations Special Session on Disarmament held in June 1982.
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No More Hibakusha!Martin Duckworth 1983 55 minHibakusha is the Japanese word for the survivors of the American bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. This powerful and moving documentary focuses on a few of the eighty hibakusha who journeyed from Japan to New York in June, 1982, to take part in peace demonstrations held to coincide with the Second United Nations Special Session on Disarmament. They came to urge the nations of the world to prevent nuclear war. Instead of concentrating on the physical suffering of the victims, the film reveals the mental anguish of the hibakusha, who are still haunted by nightmares.
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The Strangest DreamEric Bednarski 2008 1 h 29 minThis is the story of Joseph Rotblat, the only nuclear scientist to leave the Manhattan Project, the U.S. government’s secret program to build the first atomic bomb. His was a decision based on moral grounds.
The film retraces the history of nuclear weapons, from the first test in New Mexico, to Hiroshima, where we see survivors of the first atomic attack. Branded a traitor and spy, Rotblat went from designing atomic bombs to researching the medical uses of radiation. Together with Bertrand Russell he helped create the modern peace movement, and eventually won the Nobel Peace Prize.
Featuring interviews with contemporaries of Rotblat and passionate public figures including Senator Roméo Dallaire, The Strangest Dream demonstrates the renewed threat of nuclear weapons and encourages hope through the example of morally engaged scientists and citizens. -
The Un-CanadiansLen Scher 1996 1 h 12 minIn the late 1940s through to the early '70s, one million Canadians were investigated by their own government, irretrievably altering their lives. The Un-Canadians uncovers some of their stories and documents the workings of a secret government agency, "The Security Panel," an organization that, along with the RCMP security service, shaped and monitored the development of a Canadian blacklist during the Cold War. We also see the influence that the United States, and Senator Joe McCarthy's tactics, had on the Government of Canada. Through in-depth interviews, archival footage and revealing documents, The Un-Canadians tracks down the supposed "subversives" and traces the effect that the blacklist had on their lives. Many had their careers ruined and their family lives destroyed. Director Len Scher knows how it feels to grow up in one of these families. His father was one of those blacklisted. Scher's attempts to learn why resulted in the publication of the book "The Un-Canadians," upon which this film is based.
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A Writer in the Nuclear Age: A Conversation with Margaret LaurenceTerre Nash 1985 9 minIn this short film, internationally acclaimed author Margaret Laurence passionately addresses several issues related to peace: the social responsibility of the writer; language usage and reality; jargon and "newspeak"; imagination, meaning and understanding; the nuclear threat; world leadership; the role of empathy in communication; the distinctions between fiction and didactic writing; and the power of "ordinary" people to influence events. The film's scope makes this an excellent discussion starter in diverse subject areas.
