Dawn’s Early Light is a suspenseful and almost melancholic movie in which an accidental nuclear war is started between the United States and the Soviet Union, the cause of which is unknown, and remains rightfully so until the conclusion, although the synopsis on the back of the DVD case would spoil it.

The movie portrays an archetypal US-Soviet relation, in which one misunderstanding after another escalates the crisis and intensity of war between the two.

Although the militaristic theme is present (it would be hard pressed to such a movie without), the movie focuses more on the individual and personal reactions, centering around the crew of a B-52 bomber and the commanding General of a C&C E-4 craft as they come to grips with what transpired and evaluate their morality and conscience of what they are about to do. Also featured is some power struggle between members of the US cabinet and military as parties ponder the classic question of whether there could ever a victor in such a war, or that one should cut their losses and accept a compromise.

In other words, it has all one could possibly want in a cold war apocalyptic movie and has made it’s way the list of my all time favorite movies.