Movie: WarGames

Release Date: June 3, 1983

Director: John Badham

Starring: Matthew Broderick, Dabney Coleman, John Wood, Ally Sheedy.

Tag Lines: “The only winning move is not to play.”

“To David Lightman, “Global Thermonuclear War” will just be one hell of a game. To everybody else, it will be hell waiting to happen.”

“‘Global Thermonuclear War.’ You may think it’s one hell of a game. You couldn’t be more right.”

“Wouldn’t YOU rather play chess?”

“Shall we Play!”

“Is it a game, or is it real?”

Relevance: Before I was able to drive, my transportation to and from the movies was usually a parent of one of my friends going to the movie with me. That was the case when I first saw ‘Wargames’ in theaters in the summer of 1983 at the age of 12. We always knew what movie we were going to see before leaving, unlike the days after we turned 16 when we would drive to the theater, stare at the marquee and decide at that moment. So when I got in the car with two of my friends driven by my friend’s mom that day, I definitely knew what we were going to see.

I never considered myself a huge “gamer,” but I did own an Atari 2600 in 1983 and played games like Pac-Man, Asteroids and Frogger pretty much that entire summer vacation. My daily routine for the summer was pretty simple. Basically I played games in the morning, went outside and played in the sun all day until I was called for dinner, ate, played more video games, watched TV and then went to sleep. On that rare occasion, we went to the movies.

I didn’t know a lot about ‘Wargames’ going in to see it, just that it was about a computer game and nuclear war. Nuclear war at the time scared the hell out of me. I was always afraid it was going to happen at any minute and had numerous chats with both of my parents about the threat of war all of the time. Later that year, a TV movie aired called “The Day After’ which was about Nuclear War and its aftermath. Because of that movie, our president at the time and the constant talk about a possible war, I didn’t sleep for most of 1983.

Thankfully this movie didn’t scare me, it just really entertained me. It was a box-office success and catapulted the careers of both Matthew Broderick and Ally Sheedy. It also starred Dabney Coleman whom I was very familiar with thanks to movies like ‘9 to 5, ‘On Golden Pond’ and ‘Tootsie,’ All of those movies, by the way, will be showing up on this list later this year. When ‘Wargames’ started playing on HBO, I watched it every chance that I could. And every time I asked my sister (or anyone for that matter) if they wanted to play a game with me, it was said a la Joshua…”Shall we play a game?”

Today’s Thoughts: My goodness how young and adorable were Matthew Broderick and Ally Sheedy? I am impressed how well they did acting in the movie as well considering it was only the second movie for both of them. Their naivete and charm are really captured in these roles and you could see why they were soon starring in other big blockbusters that have become classics over the years.

I can’t remember the last time that I watched ‘Wargames’ in its entirety, but my guess is that it has been at least twenty or more years. I am delighted to report how well this movie has held up. Yes, the computers are definitely “old school,” but it is still a fun adventure movie to watch and enjoy. It really is quite well done and it’s still suspenseful, funny and inventive watching it in the year 2020 as it was back in 1983. I am totally now in the mood to play my Atari 2600.

Or how about a nice game of chess?

Awards: Academy Award for Best Writing, Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen, Lawrence Lasker, Walter F. Parkes (nomination), Academy Award for Best Cinematography, William A. Fraker (nomination), Academy Award for Best Sound, Michael J. Kohut, Carlos Delarios, Aaron Rochin, Willie D. Burton (nomination), BAFTA Award for Best Sound, Michael J. Kohut, Carlos Delarios, Aaron Rochin, Willie D. Burton (winner), BAFTA Award for Best Production Design/Art Direction, Angelo P. Graham (nomination), BAFTA Award for Best Special Visual Effects, Michael L. Fink, Joe Digaetano, Jack Cooperman, Don Hansard, Colin Cantwell, William A. Fraker (nomination), Writers Guild of America Award for Best Drama Written Directly for the Screen, Lawrence Laker, Walter F. Parkes (nomination).

Ways to Watch: YouTube, Vudu, Amazon Prime, Google Play, iTunes, Cinemax, DVD Availability.