How did international films provide awareness of the danger of nuclear wars?

Nuclear wars are a comprehensive danger that destroys the green and the land, and a direct threat to the goals of sustainable development, such as the goals of health, food, climate, cities, and peace. Hiroshima and Nagasaki are not far from us, but the world still has more than 12 nuclear warheads!

Because these nuclear weapons and their wars pose an imminent danger to the annihilation of humanity, and their ability to destroy planet Earth, since the 1950s, international cinema has made films to enlighten people about this danger. Which prompted The Earth Guards Foundation to shed light in this article – via its website – on 3 examples of these films, and this highlighting is within the framework of the seven sustainable development goals. Ten, not from the angle of the weapon alone; So keep reading.

Cinema and awareness films

In the beginning, the world witnessed a Cold War, where tension was at its highest between Washington and Moscow. In the face of this fear, many countries have resorted to producing awareness films, the aim of which is to inform the population of the dangers of nuclear weapons and the harms of nuclear radiation. The most prominent of these cinematic films are the following:

“Bend and Hide” movie

This film (in English: Duck and Cover) is an animated film directed at children, starring the turtle “Bert”. It calls on the child to take shelter under the table or next to the wall, with his face and neck covered. This film also presents a short awareness song that sends a message to children in schools. To guide them on what to do in the event of a nuclear attack.

The movie “Atomic City”

On the other hand, we can watch the movie The Atomic City; It is an American drama film produced in 1952. Its story takes place in Los Alamos, New Mexico, where nuclear physicist Frank works. There, terrorists kidnap his son and ask him for the formula for a nuclear bomb, before the story ends with targeting the mastermind and preventing him while implementing a plan to seize a nuclear bomb that can destroy humans and their natural resources.

How do you steal a bomb?

The third film is “How to Steal the Bomb”, which is a rare film, and it is an Italian-Egyptian production. Joint, in which Egyptian actors appeared:

• Youssef Wehbe
• Adel Adham
• Abdel Moneim Ibrahim

The events of his story revolve around an Italian fisherman who saw a US Air Force bomber falling into the sea off the Egyptian coast, carrying nuclear weapons. This Italian – named Franco – was tracked down by a criminal organization to extract any information from him regarding the location of the plane. To obtain nuclear weapons; However, their attempts failed.

What do these films tell us today?

These films – and other films produced later – reveal one idea, which is that cinema has relied on the principle of awareness-raising in a Direct and indirect, which is consistent with the Sustainable Development Goals; Which calls for the prevention of any danger threatening humans and their planet.

Here comes Goal 16 of the Sustainable Development Goals, which revolves around achieving peace, justice and strong institutions, warning against all forms of violence and the associated death rates everywhere, in addition to strengthening national institutions with international cooperation. In order to prevent violence.

What do nuclear explosions do to humans and the environment?

We have given previous examples to explore the role of cinema since the 1950s in raising awareness of the danger of nuclear weapons, and now the question remains that these films have not answered, which is: What actually happens after the explosion of nuclear bombs?

The answer is that damage comes in stages; In the first minutes The heat and explosion wave comes that destroys buildings and kills those around them, then radioactive dust falls, infecting the body with severe diseases in the first days, and at a later stage with serious diseases such as cancer.

As for the environment, it remains damaged for a long time. Because radioactive materials pollute soil, water, and crops, and make entire areas unsuitable for habitation or agriculture. That is, the danger does not end when the explosion ends.

How does this relate to food and climate?

In more detail, we confirm that nuclear wars and their deadly tools are closely related to food and climate. Scientific studies on the climate effects resulting from nuclear wars indicate that a single nuclear war may cause the spread of massive amounts of From soot between layers of the atmosphere; The sun’s rays are blocked, and the Earth cools in a phase known as nuclear winter or atomic winter.

Consequently, agricultural crops are destroyed, and hunger strikes entire peoples, even in countries that did not participate in any nuclear war. This called on the United Nations to warn against such deadly weapons, especially after it was expected that the global stockpile of nuclear weapons would increase for the first time since the end of the Cold War, in light of the spread of modern technologies such as artificial intelligence and cyber capabilities.

In addition to this international call, two international days were launched, namely:

• International Day Against Nuclear Testing, on August 29 of each year.
• International Day for the Total Elimination of Weapons Nuclear, on September 26 of every year.

This is in order to raise awareness of the necessity of nuclear disarmament, and to work against nuclear testing, as well as to raise the awareness of the peoples of the world and educate them about the danger of nuclear wars, and their devastating weapons for humans and their environment.

How do you protect yourself from nuclear war?

Now, a number of precautionary measures must be recognized, and some behaviors that may increase the chances of survival when exposed to falling nuclear radiation, which are:

1. Enter a solid building immediately; The more walls and distance from the outside, the greater the protection.
2. Stay away from windows, and take shelter in the interior floors or basement.
3. Stay indoors for even long hours The authorities issue clear instructions.
4. Close doors and windows, and stop outside ventilation.
5. Store water, food and first aid supplies.

In the end, these films reveal that the threat of nuclear wars is a threat to the human right to life, to the ability of societies to provide food, water, and health care, and to the balance of the ecosystems on which the lives of successive generations are based. This is the most dangerous paradox; The effects of nuclear wars extend across borders and time, with people who did not participate in the conflict paying the price for decisions to which they were not a party.

This is what makes The Earth Guards Foundation address this type of world cinema, that cinema that reminds that protecting life begins with knowledge And readiness, and that the whole world needs international institutions capable of preventing escalation, agreements that limit the spread of nuclear weapons, and a political will that puts the survival of humanity above considerations of military superiority.