The missiles of October (1974)
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The missiles of October are a TV classic, portraying the actions and reactions of the Kennedy brothers and their inner circle during their 1962 dealings with the Soviet Union over the USSR’s clandestine placement of missiles in Cuba. The three-hours movie dramatizes the event of the Cuban crisis of 1962, when USSR tried to establish a nuclear ballistic missile in Cuba in defiance of USA demand that it removes the missiles. After a few months, the U.S. removed its missiles from Turkey, complying with Soviet demands. The film based on Robert F. Kennedy’s recollection, Thirteen days. Page’s austere style heightened the intensity of this dangerous international standoff, creating a star in William Devane as JFK, and co-starring Martin Sheen as RFK. The film won an Emmy for the technical direction of Erni Buttlemen and his crew received eight nominations in all, including for outstanding special.
The docudrama is a tense political drama that is based on facts that trace the tense discussion that took place in the white house as the president’s key advisers debated how to respond to the soviet challenge. President Kennedy remains cool as his reins in his more bellicose advisers to bring about a compromise that avoids a nuclear confrontation with Moscow. The movie is based on the recollection of Robert Kennedy, thus it presents a favorable handling of the crisis and triumphalism attitude in the end. The movie depicts Khrushchev and his Cuban ally, Fidel Castro, as the enemy of the American people. What is exciting concerning the show is the constant negotiations and, discussions that culminated to the signing of the deal.
The move is relevant to the concepts, contents and principle we leant throughout the course. It does not offer a classical example of an international crisis but also offer a good example of how strained negotiations affect international policy. The movie depicts the dynamics of decision making process and international negotiations. The Cuban crisis is regarded as one of the greatest crisis post-world war that could insurmountable implications on global peace and stability. The negotiation processes that culminated to the removal of Soviet’s missiles in Cuba present the world with a case study that is worthy to review. The communication challenges that characterized the negotiation indicate the bureaucracy and protocols involved in international negotiations. The influence of power brokers and mediators is significantly depicted because not only after the communication barriers were removed that the two leaders reached a compromise. Months after the crisis were over, USA, Russia and Britain signed a nuclear test ban that prohibited the nuclear testing in the atmosphere and underwater. This symbolizes one of the most significant improvements in international relations between communist and capitalists. Therefore, the film offers student a chance to explore one of the most significant international crises and comprehend the result of the crisis.
The film is unbiased in its overall depiction of the crisis evading the good vs. evil oppositions that were characteristic of the rhetoric of the cold war. Indeed, the film does not take sides. It clearly, leaves open the possibility of seeing aggressive American attitude toward Cuba as the most important cause of the crisis.
