# Did the day after scare you? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [September 6, 2019, 11:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-the-day-after-scare-you/839820 "2019-09-06T23:45:28Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![bionic\_man](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/49beb7/32.png) [@bionic\_man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bionic_man)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2019, 11:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-the-day-after-scare-you/839820/1 "2019-09-06T23:45:28Z")
In the 80s a t.v.movie aired about nuclear war in akansas town.also there were the British film threads.if you watched it did you find it scary to watch? ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2019, 11:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-the-day-after-scare-you/839820/2 "2019-09-06T23:47:47Z")
Not in the least. Lawrence, Kansas _needs_ nuking! ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2019, 11:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-the-day-after-scare-you/839820/3 "2019-09-06T23:48:44Z")
Hell yeah. Scared me and my sibs silly. ---
**Author:** ![Alpha\_Twit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alpha_twit/32/265_2.png) [@Alpha\_Twit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alpha_Twit)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2019, 11:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-the-day-after-scare-you/839820/4 "2019-09-06T23:57:57Z")
I didn’t think too much of it but as a pre-teen, I might have missed some of the impact. As I was living about 90 minutes from Lawrence at the time, it gained a small bit of significance for me. > [@silenus](#): > > Lawrence, Kansas _needs_ nuking! I don’t dispute this in any way but I’m curious as to your reasons. I have my own reason to bring about the end of Jayhawk basketball via nuclear conflagration but I welcome your thoughts. ---
**Author:** ![Two\_Many\_Cats](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8dc957/32.png) [@Two\_Many\_Cats](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Two_Many_Cats)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2019, 12:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-the-day-after-scare-you/839820/5 "2019-09-07T00:04:44Z")
As nuclear doomsday movies go, it was below average. Dull, dull, dull. The only nuclear disaster film to scare me was a compilation of Cold War propaganda films called _The Atomic Cafe_. “Holy crap! These people were morons! And they had the Bomb? Jesus Christ, it’s a wonder the world survived!” These were my very frightened thoughts while watching it. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2019, 12:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-the-day-after-scare-you/839820/6 "2019-09-07T00:10:00Z")
It’s Kansas. I would say drop one on Palco, but I may be the only person who knows where that is, or cares. Old family feuds. ---
**Author:** ![snfaulkner](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snfaulkner/32/433_2.png) [@snfaulkner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snfaulkner)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2019, 12:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-the-day-after-scare-you/839820/7 "2019-09-07T00:14:17Z")
My wife was emotionally scarred for life by The Day After as a kid. I remember being slightly concerned for a short while, then I quickly forgot about it. Neither of us have seen threads, but I’d like to. ---
**Author:** ![hogarth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hogarth/32/1773_2.png) [@hogarth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hogarth)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2019, 12:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-the-day-after-scare-you/839820/8 "2019-09-07T00:14:34Z")
I thought it was more depressing than scary. ---
**Author:** ![Alpha\_Twit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alpha_twit/32/265_2.png) [@Alpha\_Twit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alpha_Twit)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2019, 12:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-the-day-after-scare-you/839820/9 "2019-09-07T00:18:04Z")
Thanks for sharing, **silenus**. Yeah, Palco is kind of the middle of nowhere, even by Kansas standards. In other news, best nuclear war film IMHO: [By Dawn’s Early Light](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/By_Dawn%27s_Early_Light). ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2019, 12:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-the-day-after-scare-you/839820/10 "2019-09-07T00:56:55Z")
Only saw bits and pieces of it as a kid. The one I remember [is](https://johnkennethmuir.wordpress.com/2011/04/19/cult-tv-movie-review-special-bulletin-1983/) _[Special](https://www.upi.com/Archives/1984/04/30/The-repeat-showing-of-the-television-movie-Special-Bulletin/3754452145600/) [Bulletin](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cDZQsVNZ3SE)_. ---
**Author:** ![MacTech](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c0e974/32.png) [@MacTech](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MacTech)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2019, 12:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-the-day-after-scare-you/839820/11 "2019-09-07T00:57:46Z")
TDA was nothing compared to Threads or When the Wind Blows Threads scared the crap out of you with it’s gritty realism When the Wind Blows simply _CRUSHES_ your SOUL, simply the most depressing, disheartening and gut-wrenching film I’ve ever seen, saw it once in high school and it stuck with me ever since, rewatching it again on YT , it has lost none of it’s impact, it still tears my heart out of my chest, shows it to me, then utterly stomps it into a fine red paste… “Shall we get into the paper bags again…?”………:(☹ ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2019, 1:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-the-day-after-scare-you/839820/12 "2019-09-07T01:03:50Z")
No, I was already terrified by **The War Game** \* > **[The War Game](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_War_Game)** > > The War Game is a 1966 British pseudo-documentary film that depicts a nuclear war and its aftermath. Written, directed and produced by Peter Watkins for the BBC, it caused dismay within the BBC and also within government, and was subsequently withdrawn before the provisional screening date of 6 October 1965. The corporation said that "the effect of the film has been judged by the BBC to be too horrifying for the medium of broadcasting. It will, however, be shown to invited audiences..." > The f... > **[The War Game Script- Nuclear War](http://www.script-o-rama.com/movie_scripts/the-war-game-script.html)** > > The War Game Movie Script: Full Dialogue **Threads** , a British follow-up, was almost as scary. Both these films depict harsh realities that **The Day After** shied away from. > **[Thread](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Threads)** > > Thread may refer to: \*NOT the Matthew Broderick _War Games_, but the BBC dramatic recreation of atomic war. Much, much scarier than the (by comparison) much tamer American TV movie. ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2019, 1:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-the-day-after-scare-you/839820/13 "2019-09-07T01:04:17Z")
It didn’t _scare_ me but I already had a very, very clear idea of what nuclear devastation would look like and be like to live thru. ETA: I agree that _Threads_ was much more devastating to watch. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2019, 1:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-the-day-after-scare-you/839820/14 "2019-09-07T01:05:02Z")
> [@Two\_Many\_Cats](#): > > As nuclear doomsday movies go, it was below average. Dull, dull, dull. > > The only nuclear disaster film to scare me was a compilation of Cold War propaganda films called _The Atomic Cafe_. “Holy crap! These people were morons! And they had the Bomb? Jesus Christ, it’s a wonder the world survived!” These were my very frightened thoughts while watching it. I love this film, and own a copy of it. The brilliant part of it is that it’s simply a compilation of films and TV programs with no voice-over narration, or any dialogue that’s not in the original. ---
**Author:** ![Baker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bb73d2/32.png) [@Baker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baker)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2019, 1:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-the-day-after-scare-you/839820/15 "2019-09-07T01:07:26Z")
I live in Topeka, a short half hour from Lawrence. I figure I would have been toast, as the first nukes we saw were in KC, and Topeka is between KC and Lawrence. It scared me, but Threads was even worse, That last scene where the girl sees her baby and opens he mouth to scream, and the story ends, shudder. ---
**Author:** ![snfaulkner](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snfaulkner/32/433_2.png) [@snfaulkner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snfaulkner)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2019, 1:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-the-day-after-scare-you/839820/16 "2019-09-07T01:16:17Z")
> [@MacTech](#): > > TDA was nothing compared to Threads or When the Wind Blows > > Threads scared the crap out of you with it’s gritty realism > > When the Wind Blows simply _CRUSHES_ your SOUL, simply the most depressing, disheartening and gut-wrenching film I’ve ever seen, saw it once in high school and it stuck with me ever since, rewatching it again on YT , it has lost none of it’s impact, it still tears my heart out of my chest, shows it to me, then utterly stomps it into a fine red paste… > “Shall we get into the paper bags again…?”………:(☹ Would you say it it is more soul crushing than The Road? If so, I need to see it, and then hate myself for doing so. ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2019, 1:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-the-day-after-scare-you/839820/17 "2019-09-07T01:17:04Z")
It shook me, rather than scare. ---
**Author:** ![MacTech](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c0e974/32.png) [@MacTech](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MacTech)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2019, 1:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-the-day-after-scare-you/839820/18 "2019-09-07T01:34:20Z")
> [@snfaulkner](#): > > Would you say it it is more soul crushing than The Road? If so, I need to see it, and then hate myself for doing so. I never saw The Road, It looked interesting, but I heard it was pretty heavy-handed on the religion side, and I hate glurge, i’ll see if it’s available on any of the Big 3 streaming services… WTWB is getting harder to find, I haven’t seen a YT copy in a while, and the only DVD I’ve been able to find on Amazon is an unauthorized burn from a pirated source, WTWB needs to be re-released, either streaming or on DVD/Blu-Ray ---
**Author:** ![SciFiSam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/47e85d/32.png) [@SciFiSam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SciFiSam)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2019, 1:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-the-day-after-scare-you/839820/19 "2019-09-07T01:46:20Z")
> [@MacTech](#): > > TDA was nothing compared to Threads or When the Wind Blows > > Threads scared the crap out of you with it’s gritty realism > > When the Wind Blows simply _CRUSHES_ your SOUL, simply the most depressing, disheartening and gut-wrenching film I’ve ever seen, saw it once in high school and it stuck with me ever since, rewatching it again on YT , it has lost none of it’s impact, it still tears my heart out of my chest, shows it to me, then utterly stomps it into a fine red paste… > “Shall we get into the paper bags again…?”………:(☹ Threads is just so straightforward - it really looks like a documentary about the end of the world, albeit set in the 80s. It did scare me as a child and it scared my 1998 born child and her friends too. > [@snfaulkner](#): > > Would you say it it is more soul crushing than The Road? If so, I need to see it, and then hate myself for doing so. When the Wind Blows is animated, so that may change how it affects you. It’s about two elderly British people doing everything they’re told to. There is no outright horror and very little happens. But it’s fairly unusual to watch it and not be upset at least, I’d say. It’s like the first section of Up, but the world ends. The Day After, I only saw on YouTube a couple of years ago after it was recommended on here, and the effect was dimmed by having seen Threads as a child, but it was still well done and yeah, pretty scary. ---
**Author:** ![Quimby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/22d042/32.png) [@Quimby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quimby)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2019, 1:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-the-day-after-scare-you/839820/20 "2019-09-07T01:53:47Z")
I was very affected by the people turning into skeletons when the bombs went off in The Day After. It scared me for days. Like others, Threads also terrified me. Especially the ending. It gave me nightmares for a long time. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-the-day-after-scare-you/839820.md?page=2)