The Atomic Cafe (dir. Jayne Loader, Kevin and Pierce Rafferty)

This is a great documentary about the nuclear era from an American perspective. The film relies solely on archive material from the forties, fifties, and I think sixties, ranging from newsreel footage to military training films. There is no narration other than that from the archive footage of film and radio clips as well as carefully chosen songs which reflect the nuclear theme. It's wonderfully crafted so that you see the propaganda and the hypocrisy of the media and government and think about the fear and paranoia it caused the nation as well as the similarities in the nature of the footage to today's media in this country. Despite the horrors we see in this film such as the 'scientific' study of the effects of the atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki (close-ups of destroyed bodies) there is humour in the film. I guess, however, it's that kind of incredulous humour when we see things like billboards warning people to be on the look out for communists spies and government instructional films such as "Duck and Cover', like that's going to save you from a nuclear blast. Of course the film is a piece of propaganda in itself in that it's one sided and perfectly crafted for great effect, so in a way is a reflection of what it criticises, especially as it doesn't deviate from the source material but perhaps that's what saves it from being 'preachy'.