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Wargames [1983] | ![Wargames [1983]](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51AT1F8FWML._SL500_.jpg)
| Director: John Badham
Actors: Matthew Broderick, Dabney Coleman, John Wood, Ally Sheedy, Barry Corbin
Studio: MGM Entertainment
Category: DVD
List Price: £12.99
Buy New: £2.69
You Save: £10.30 (79%)
New (14) Used (6) from £2.12
Avg. Customer Rating:  13 reviews
Sales Rank: 2836
Format: Anamorphic, Dubbed, Full Screen, Pal, Widescreen
Languages: English (Original Language), German (Original Language), English (Subtitled), Spanish (Subtitled), German (Subtitled), French (Subtitled), Italian (Subtitled), Portuguese (Subtitled), Swedish (Subtitled), Danish (Subtitled), Dutch (Subtitled)
Rating: Parental Guidance
Number Of Items: 1
Running Time: 108
Discs: 1
Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.2
Dimensions (in): 7.1 x 5.4 x 0.6
EAN: 5050070001839
ASIN: B00004TT7C
Theatrical Release Date: June 3, 1983
Release Date: July 24, 2000
Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days
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Amazon.co.uk Review
Cute but silly, this 1983 cautionary fantasy stars Matthew Broderick as a teenage computer genius who hacks into the Pentagon's defence system and sets World War III into motion. All the fun is in the film's set-up, as Broderick befriends Ally Sheedy and starts the international crisis by pretending while online to be the Soviet Union. After that, it's not hard to predict what's going to happen: government agents swoop in, but the story ends up in the "hands" of machines talking to one another. Thus we're stuck with flashing lights, etc. John Badham (Saturday Night Fever) directs in strict potboiler mode. Children still like this movie, though. --Tom Keogh, Amazon.com
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| Customer Reviews: Read 8 more reviews...
 One of the most memorable films of the 80s February 4, 2008
1 out of 2 found this review helpful
Looking back on my formative years, several theatrical releases stand out above all others, films such as the Star Wars trilogy (of course), E.T., Grease, and - yes - Wargames. Back in 1983, this film was incredible. Home computers were still mysterious contraptions I knew little about (I doubt I even had my Commodore 64 yet), and here was a guy hacking into other computers to change his grades, play cool new games, and who knew what else. And if that weren't enough, his computer actually talked. Looking back now, I have to wonder how many hackers became hackers because of Wargames. I know the film produced plenty of kids just like me who suddenly wanted a computer more than anything else in the world. Younger generations might not appreciate Wargames as much as I do - many will never have seen an old school computer room, computer tapes, an external modem that actually holds the phone receiver, gigantic floppy disks, or even an old-timey command prompt, nor will they know what it was like to grow up in the shadow of a possible full-scale nuclear was between America and the Evil Empire - but I have to believe they will enjoy this film nonetheless. It had been many years since I last watched Wargames, and I'm actually a little surprised at how well the film holds up all these years later.
In the event of a first strike nuclear attack by the Soviet Union, response time is of the essence if you want to live up to your end of the mutually assured destruction bargain, so it makes sense to let a computer handle as much of the response action as possible - especially when that computer is the W.O.P.R. (War Operation Plan Response). After all, the W.O.P.R. spends all of its time calculating different nuclear war scenarios, and - more importantly - it does not fall subject to the fallibility of human beings, the kind of unpredictability that sees 22% of nuclear launch commanders failing to release their birds during the most realistic of tests. Unfortunately, the W.O.P.R. has a secret backdoor that no one knows about - until, that is, a geeky teenager manages to get in through that backdoor. While trying to hack into a software company's computers to sneak a peek at their upcoming games, David Lightman (Matthew Broderick) manages to gain entry into a much more interesting game server. He and would-be girlfriend Jennifer Mack (Ally Sheedy) get a kick out of targeting American cities for destruction in a game of Global Thermonuclear War, having no idea that the folks at NORAD are staining their shorts over reports of incoming missiles from the Soviet Union - not until the three-minute scare makes the news the next day. When the W.O.P.R. actually calls back, David realizes that the game he started is still running - and that it is much more than just a game.
There's plenty of excitement and suspense as the wargame races toward an end-game scenario which could well result in the very real deaths of hundreds of millions of people. It's going to take more than a kid to convince the brass at NORAD that the incoming missiles they see on all of their screens are actually illusory, especially when that kid is suspected of treasonous espionage. Broderick, Ally Sheedy, and Dabney Coleman turn in excellent performances, but my props have to go to Barry Corbin, whose character, the eminently quotable General Jack Beringer, gets all the best lines, such as "I'd piss on a spark plug if I thought it'd do any good!" and "after very careful consideration, sir, I've come to the conclusion that your new defense system sucks."
Man, I love the 80s - and Wargames is one of the true classics from that greatest of decades.
 NEARLY WW3 October 24, 2007
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
Computer geek, Mathew Broderick (aged 7) accesses a top US military program and converses with a super computer, tasked with the nuclear defence of the USA.
The computer learns from it's activity and decides to launch a full nuclear war against the USSR (bearded men with vodka breath). Only Broderick and the computer's creator can save mankind from a fate worse than Dale Winton.
enjoyable thriller November 2, 2006
1 out of 5 found this review helpful
When reading the description I wasn't too sure but this 1983 Sci-Fi thriller turned out to be an enjoyable watch.
Broderick (Ferris Bueller) stars along side breakfast club star Sheedy and the two are juxtaposed in an engaging plot about a teenager who is caught up in a very realistic game of war and destruction.
Apart from the beginning the film justifies the genre perfectly by being fats, flowing and consistent throughout with many ideologies of social and government security encoded to justify an unsafe environment to add a nervous plot to the story.
The acting is average but the two young stars deliver what was required. Having older characters juxtaposed with teenagers allows for different opinions about what is happening allowing for a quicker scenario to the story.
Its is fast flowing and very exciting throughout. There are twists used to add to the tension and the concept f the unknown also builds up pace.
The ending was a let down because it was too confusing. Regardless if you like fast stories involving computer games then this is the one for you.
8/10
 A bit average May 19, 2006
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
War Games is a film starring a very young Matthew Broderick as a computer geek in the early '80's when computers were not the every day item that we see today. His obsession with computers and the latest technology lead him to try and hack into the network of a computer company who have been advertising their new never before seen games. The only thing is there is a wait for it to be released and he doesn't want to wait.
Unfortunately, he manages to inadvertently hack into the wrong system ending up instead in a top secret military computer system that has been designed to create war situations on a program deciding strategies and casualty figures in case America ever ended up in a nuclear war situation with Russia. So where as he thinks he's playing a game, he nearly launches a ton of nuclear weapons.
The best thing about this film is looking at the computers that in 1983 were classed as being high-tech. Check out the size of the floppy discs!! The film is okay in theory but unfortunately I did feel that it was incredibly slow especially round the middle where it did seem to meander along for about half an hour without much at all happening. It did buck up a bit towards the end but I had near enough lost interest by then. I felt that it wasn't the sort of film that really displayed Matthew Broderick's talent. He did spend the majority of the film looking decidedly glum which simply does not suit him.
The end of the film was pure Hollywood cheese ending with a moral you could see coming a mile off. It's certainly not up there with The Goonies as one reviewer has suggested.
It's worth watching though for the rubbish computers alone. (And I thought my old Commodore 64 was bad!)
One of the best thrillers (of any era)- a modern classic April 26, 2006
2 out of 3 found this review helpful
The early 1980s was a time of high paranoia as East and West faced off against each other in an increasingly complex game of nuclear brinksmanship and Hollywood definitely took notice with a series of movies that seemed to fortell just how dangerous such machinations could be. Another genre popular in the early 1980s was films centered around the booming possibilities of computers, from Tron to The Last Stafighter, so it perhaps should not surprise anyone that these two genre's would be combined.
But what was surprising was that the final product, the 1983 movie WARGAMES starring a pre-Ferris Bueller Matthew Broderick, would be so entertaining and skillful in its execution. In fact the movie is perhaps the most consistently watchable and best thriller from the era, transcending its natural audience of teenage boys to encompass a more general appeal with its fast pace, technological wonders, interesting characterizations and tight plotting that remains to this day one of my favorite movies.
Although the computers and technology looks somewhat primitive by today's standards it was cutting edge for its day (a fact which leaves Broderick having to explain the process of computer networking to Ally Sheedy's character and the "computer geeks" explaining program back-doors). In fact in these days when home computers were in their infancy the plot seems incredibly tech savvy.
The movie starts with the arrival of two men at one of the sites tasked with launching nuclear missiles. Suddenly a message comes through ordering them to launch and believing the order to be genuine (its actually a training exercise) they prepare to follow out the command. The near-apocalyptic judgment and the hesitancy of the men in the silos lead the military to remove men from the sites and replace them with computers - a decision they will soon regret.
Switch to Broderick's character, a very smart high school student who is attempting to access a series of new computer games by connecting his computer to his telephone line and having it dial every number in the computer companies area code. Waiting for it to find another computer signal (anyone who ever had to sit through a dial-up connection will recognize the screeching sound of one computer talking to another) Broderick's character comes across what he believes to be the right number. And proceeds to play a game with the rather chilling title "Global Thermonuclear War."
Unbeknownst to him his "game" is a tactical scenario for the computer in charge of the United States' nuclear weapons silo's and his choice to play the part of the Soviet Union has set alarms ringing at NORAD.
What follows is a quite exhilirating against time to stop global Armageddon. There are no car chases, no shoot-em-ups - just good solid suspense and tension.
The DVD features a rather interesting scene specific commentary that is also quite enlightening. Who knew for example that in this pre-CGI age that all the giant computer screens at NORAD had to have the imagery projected onto them.
All in all, a solid movie that really delivers - you need to check this out. Sure it looks a little dated now, but I would definitely put this in the category of a "modern classic."
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