That line spoken by Joshua, the defence computer at NORAD never fails to send shivers down my spine. Even though I've seen WarGames 500 times, its a classic line. Just as resonant as Gloria Swanson asking Mr De Mille for her closeup. Or John Candy's heartfelt "I like me" speech in Planes, Trains & Automobiles. The difference between Joshua and those people is Joshua is not a real person. Just a computer. But a computer that has a very difficult time distinguishing fantasy from reality. A computer with the same foibles as any flesh and blood person.
WarGames was so ahead of its time in so many ways. The way it embraced modems, the use of computer jargon like firewalls. Commonplace things today but practically unheard of back in 1983. Granted some of the technology may have dated (you get to see an actual floppy disk) but the film's message hasn't faded. And nor has its power. They're just as strong as ever.
David Lightman (Matthew Broderick) is the classic hi-tech nerd. He's a bright boy. He knows the ins and outs of all the computers. And he hacks into systems with all the skill of a safecracker. But he's an underachiever at school. Hasn't got many friends. And he gets on the wrong side of all the teachers. And his parents.
David is far more interested in playing computer games. And when he learns a toy company is planning to release up to date ones in a few months, he wants the inside story. So he hacks into systems until he finds the right one. And he finds one alright. But not the system he thinks.
When he taps into Joshua, David gets the chance to play Global ThermoNuclear War. And accidentally sets in motion the countdown to World War III.
There is something almost blackly humorous to the way WarGames' screenplay turns. How through one innocent little action, David begins a chain reaction of increasingly dire circumstances. Although WarGames never gets as black as Dr Strangelove, its very effective in its first half, as the different steps David takes get more and more unnerving. Its all summed up perfectly at the halfway point with another classic line from Joshua, WarGames' answer to Hal 9000. When asked if Global ThermoNuclear War is a game or not, Joshua innocently replies "What's the difference?"
It does tend to get a bit bogged down in the second half with a lot of ethical debates over the futility of nuclear war. But that doesn't change the fact that WarGames has got an exceptional cast. Even at the start of his career, and only 21 at the time, Matthew Broderick gives an assured performance. And modulates his character accordingly when David gets in over his head.
Ally Sheedy is sometimes a difficult actress to tune in to, but she gives Jennifer, David's only real friend a lot of life and spunk. John Wood is suitably flaky as Joshua's creator, Dabney Coleman perfectly obnoxious as the head of the computers David's messed with, and Barry Corbin's general more than just a one-dimensional caricature. Which would have been a lot easier to play.
I didn't always buy into the technical somersaults that WarGames comes out with. David's method of escaping from NORAD is something that just doesn't ring true. And you have to suspend disbelief a little too much. All they're seeing on those big screens is false. And no one puts it together. But there is something frightening about the film's conceit all the same.
The line that separates reality from fantasy becomes blurred. And when the subject in question is nuclear war, who wouldn't be carried along with that? It all works on the level of a paranoid nightmare that just keeps on going and refuses to stop.
The final scenes though are quite philosophical. And again its Joshua who provides that unrelenting, implacable logic. Only this time tempered with common sense. WarGames is filled with many great characters, but its Joshua who is the film's heart. That final line at the end is a statement of such striking intelligence, its almost scary:
"A strange game. The only winning move is not to play."
WarGames was so ahead of its time in so many ways. The way it embraced modems, the use of computer jargon like firewalls. Commonplace things today but practically unheard of back in 1983. Granted some of the technology may have dated (you get to see an actual floppy disk) but the film's message hasn't faded. And nor has its power. They're just as strong as ever.
David Lightman (Matthew Broderick) is the classic hi-tech nerd. He's a bright boy. He knows the ins and outs of all the computers. And he hacks into systems with all the skill of a safecracker. But he's an underachiever at school. Hasn't got many friends. And he gets on the wrong side of all the teachers. And his parents.
David is far more interested in playing computer games. And when he learns a toy company is planning to release up to date ones in a few months, he wants the inside story. So he hacks into systems until he finds the right one. And he finds one alright. But not the system he thinks.
When he taps into Joshua, David gets the chance to play Global ThermoNuclear War. And accidentally sets in motion the countdown to World War III.
There is something almost blackly humorous to the way WarGames' screenplay turns. How through one innocent little action, David begins a chain reaction of increasingly dire circumstances. Although WarGames never gets as black as Dr Strangelove, its very effective in its first half, as the different steps David takes get more and more unnerving. Its all summed up perfectly at the halfway point with another classic line from Joshua, WarGames' answer to Hal 9000. When asked if Global ThermoNuclear War is a game or not, Joshua innocently replies "What's the difference?"
It does tend to get a bit bogged down in the second half with a lot of ethical debates over the futility of nuclear war. But that doesn't change the fact that WarGames has got an exceptional cast. Even at the start of his career, and only 21 at the time, Matthew Broderick gives an assured performance. And modulates his character accordingly when David gets in over his head.
Ally Sheedy is sometimes a difficult actress to tune in to, but she gives Jennifer, David's only real friend a lot of life and spunk. John Wood is suitably flaky as Joshua's creator, Dabney Coleman perfectly obnoxious as the head of the computers David's messed with, and Barry Corbin's general more than just a one-dimensional caricature. Which would have been a lot easier to play.
I didn't always buy into the technical somersaults that WarGames comes out with. David's method of escaping from NORAD is something that just doesn't ring true. And you have to suspend disbelief a little too much. All they're seeing on those big screens is false. And no one puts it together. But there is something frightening about the film's conceit all the same.
The line that separates reality from fantasy becomes blurred. And when the subject in question is nuclear war, who wouldn't be carried along with that? It all works on the level of a paranoid nightmare that just keeps on going and refuses to stop.
The final scenes though are quite philosophical. And again its Joshua who provides that unrelenting, implacable logic. Only this time tempered with common sense. WarGames is filled with many great characters, but its Joshua who is the film's heart. That final line at the end is a statement of such striking intelligence, its almost scary:
"A strange game. The only winning move is not to play."