Movie Review: WarGames (1983)

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Synopsis: A brilliant but underachieving teenager attempts to use his home computer to hack a software company and steal their new games. Instead, he accidentally hacks a defense computer that is in charge of all the United States’ nuclear weapons and triggers a simulation that has the potential to cause World War III.

Who's in it? The movie stars Matthew Broderick, Dabney Coleman, John Wood, Ally Sheedy, Barry Corbin and Dennis Lipscomb.



Review: I wasn't sure what movie I wanted to watch this morning, so to be safe, I decided to go with something familiar. That ended up being one of my all-time favorites, War Games. Even though I've seen this film many times, it still manages to be entertaining.

The thing I really like about this movie is it is really two stories. The first, and obvious, one is about the dangers of computers in the wrong hands, something that is even a bit more relevant today with so much being done online and the increase in hackers. In this particular case, it was taken to a pretty decent extreme with a kid, not knowing any better, accidentally stumbling across a line that should have been disconnected and causing chaos as a result.

The other story, however, is the one I always find somewhat intriguing, in addition to the dangers of computers, this movie also does a decent job of addressing the dangers of human nature too. When I first saw this film as a kid, I figured the various authority figures chose not to believe the teenager, David (Broderick) because of his age. As an adult, I realized they were just doing what they could to avoid embarrassment and save their careers, even if it meant the end of the world.

This ended up being one of the most intriguing things about this film because while the movie demonstrates the dangers of artificial intelligence (also much more relevant today), it also strongly suggests humans aren't capable of making the right decision either. It's a scary lesson when you also realize the world is just one simple misunderstanding away from Armageddon.

Final Opinion: The movie is more than 40 years old and obviously a bit dated as a result. However, it still manages to be entertaining while giving you a lot to think about, so it remains a movie I consider a must-watch.

My Grade: A 

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Here are some reviews of other movies about artificial intelligence:






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