The Atomic Café- 1982- Directors- Jayne Loader, Kevin Rafferty and Pierce Rafferty

           Fear is a very powerful tool and at the dawn of a nuclear revolution during the cold war the United States attempted to stay one step ahead of its adversaries by creating and expanding the use of nuclear weapons, arms capable of destruction previously unseen in recorded history.  The unknown nature of the new nuclear beast left many soldiers and citizens with questions and concerns on the after effects of nuclear exposure. So throughout 3 decades the United States pumped out military and civilian, nerve calming propaganda films and cartoons to reassure that although there were apparent dangers associated with the use of nuclear weapons, including the use of these weapons on the U.S by enemies like the Russia, that safety after exposure to nuclear radiation could be obtained. The truth was that nobody really had any truthful idea of what these aftereffects really included. The Atomic Cafe collages these propaganda films, television shows and news reels from the 1940’s through 1960’s and portrays an over confident, young nation determined to police the world with elements of fear and total destruction; creating an international sense of “if you’re not with us, you are against us”. The film shows U.S propaganda cartoons aimed towards informing children in a fun way on what to do if you hear or see “the explosion”, a “Duck and Cover” cartoon with a playful turtle that retracts into his shell when he hears the bomb go off. It is the use of clips like “Duck and Cover” that gives us an understanding of just how well the U.S kept its own citizens in the dark while mentally guiding them into an ignorant sense of national pride. A personal favorite propaganda campaign ran by the U.S during this time is one that encouraged citizens to keep their mouths shut, a loose lips sink ships type campaign that established a type of paranoia that one of our own neighbors or fellow citizens could be a spy for our enemies and working against us. Another interesting aspect of The Atomic Cafe is how the U.S used fear and paranoia amongst the population in order to expand production and consumerism, for instance a family would definitely need to buy a lot of necessary supplies for their fallout shelter in order to keep their family safe and fed while the world outside is being destroyed by the demonic hand of the enemy.

The Atomic Cafe is a very interesting documentary with a sole purpose of exposing the public to the unspoken elements of fear and paranoia implemented onto the citizens and soldiers by the United States during the era of the cold war. These real life happenings almost seem movie-like due to just how absurd some of these scenes are today, for example the part of the film where U.S soldiers are out in the field advancing towards the nuclear bomb detonation site seconds after detonation just seems insane. Because it is! It seems unreal that some of the aspects of the documentary actually happened and really provides eye opening content that leaves you questioning the government and its decisions to this very day. Overall, The Atomic Cafe is a great documentary that uses the absurdity of ignorance, fear and destruction to effectively demonstrate just how hazardous the U.S and the world can be to its self and its own wellbeing.