# Fail Safe (2000)

> An accidental nuclear strike order forces an American president to confront the lethal logic of Cold War command systems.

Canonical page: https://ember.film/movie/19375

## Facts

- Runtime: 86 min
- Genres: Drama, Thriller, TV Movie
- Director: Stephen Frears
- Cast: Walter Cronkite, Richard Dreyfuss, Noah Wyle, Brian Dennehy, Sam Elliott, James Cromwell, John Diehl, Hank Azaria
- TMDB rating: 6.9/10
- IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0235376/

## Ember's analysis

- Pacing: brisk
- Intensity: strong
- Complexity: layered
- Violence: mild
- Mood: austere, paranoid, oppressive, serious viewing, political history night

## Synopsis

A tense political thriller that explores the fragility of global peace during the Cold War.

## Movies like Fail Safe

- [The Peacemaker (1997)](https://ember.film/movie/3624)
- [The Day After (1983)](https://ember.film/movie/3728)
- [The Package (1989)](https://ember.film/movie/19799)
- [Colossus: The Forbin Project (1970)](https://ember.film/movie/8802)
- [Seven Days in May (1964)](https://ember.film/movie/13921)
- [Crimson Tide (1995)](https://ember.film/movie/4334)
- [The Brink of War (2026)](https://ember.film/movie/112704)
- [A House of Dynamite (2025)](https://ember.film/movie/3260097)
- [WarGames (1983)](https://ember.film/movie/705)
- [No Way Out (1987)](https://ember.film/movie/5199)

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