Threads is a 1984 British-Australian apocalyptic war drama television film, written by Barry Hines and directed and produced by Mick Jackson, the film is a showcase of what would happen during nuclear war in the UK specifically on the city of Sheffield. The plot centres around people caught by the consequences between the untired states and the Soviet Union. As the nuclear bomb is dropped the film depicts the medical, economic, social, and environmental consequences of nuclear war. Threads is a parallel of the real-world tensions of nuclear warfare during the eighties and the result such that would happen if such an act was followed through.
The film starts with a spider making its web hence the title of the film Threads. The film explains the symbolism behind this title with narration saying, “in an urban society everything connects each fed by the skills on many others our lives are woven together in a fabric but the connections that make society strong also make it vulnerable”. This sates that like a spider’s web what keeps society together is the way its connected and by attacking these connections in this instance through nuclear warfare you can destroy society itself. The film then switches to two of the main characters in the film Ruth and Jimmy a young couple in a car, as they are relaxing a military plane race overhead as the news on the radio talks about the military conflict with Iran showing that the threat of war constantly looms over them, but people chose to ignore it. The film is presented like an educational documentary adding to the disturbing realism of the film, the film shows a TV broadcast about the soviets in conflict with the Iran military as the soviets blame it on the US a theme throughout the film is that the people don’t listen to the dangers among them and a more concerned with their own lives with Jimmy and Ruth talk about her being pregnant.
The film is presented like an educational documentary, with the TV talking about the soviet-Iran military conflict with the soviets blaming it on the US as the people in the pub ignore the conflict and continue with their lives with Jimmy and Ruth talk about her being pregnant. The Russia and US tensions escalate at tanks go into Ian as shown on a newspaper but again people don’t listen as shown by the woman in the shop not paying attention and the paper boy having headphones on. The presents a mundane normality to life with Jimmy talking to his parents about the baby on the way causing tensions between the family. the radio again talks about the tensions between the US and Russia with people in the UK being killed, as this is happening Jimmy and Ruth’s families talk about the baby and the wedding not listening to the Iran-soviet conflict. The radio continues talking about the Soviet Union protesting about the US warships damaging a soviet cruiser, this is constantly contrasted by the normality of the film being characters like Ruth and Jimmy looking for an apparent together. This is further demonstrated when a girl doing her homework and listening to music of her headphones is drowned out by the TV talking about a warship being lost in the Iranian sea witch America blames on the Soviet Union attacks. Narration tells the audience that during wartime if the government fails local officials who take charge across the country and are given the full powers of the government and act as a safeguard as soldiers are in the middle east and Iran.
The film shows that war is in everyone’s minds as the kids makes a model airplane and the council prepares for nuclear war, as lots of people stock up on food as the council worries about food, heat, and medical supplies. The US are shown to go into Iran to protect the oil fields as Jimmy goes to see his dad about Ruth, they stop as they see the aircraft and talk about something going down as the situation gets even worse as the country is put on amber alert. Tensions further escalate as the United States accuse the Soviet Union of moving missiles into the Iran base. Again, people show no interest in the Middle East even commenting on the fact that they can’t to anything about it even though it scares them as the prime minster condemns the soviets. The minsters constantly work out resources as Jimmy awakens to see military vehicles moving at night showing the sense of dread that looms over the whole film. As this is going on the Americans call for a withdraw of US and soviet forces as the Iranian military gets stronger in Europe and Germany. Tensions rise as shown by an anti-war demonstration, as the government moves air force troupes into Germany. A speech is given about how you cannot win a nuclear war as anti-war protesters clash with industrial workers. The Soviet Union Iran conflict is said to be calming down on the news as tined food, sugar and fuel go into low supply. The American Russian conflict then officially breaks out as everything descends into bedlam with riots happening as people move away to try and get away from the Russian German US conflict. The materials used in war end up effecting the people of Sheffield a industrial town as a mass exodus as meant that only essential services remain. Nuclear bombs end up going off in the Middle East as families of low-level government officials move their families away, as police and workers protest the government’s decision in a cash with police.
The workers remove and save artwork as the government workers go into emergency bunkers. As a plane takes off Ruth strips the wallpaper off, she has a breakdown as the radio says to takes cover in an attack and if they are outside lay down as she starts crying as Jimmy confronts her. In an educational manner they say that if anyone dies, they must cover the body and make it the mundane nature of these horrible events. Ruth’s pregnancy is treated as a nuisance and a bad thing as phones end up not working as non-essential communication has been cut off. The film is layered within informational segments about nuclear attack as the government workers try and sort out what to do with resources as emergency officials have no training and have only learned about there roles in the last view days and are unsure about their duties. People try to prepare by taking the doors off to make a fallout shelter as a broadcast explain that fallout is the radioactive dust form a nuclear explosion. As the attack happens government ministers get to their stations as sirens go off. Everyone panic and takes cover as a warhead explodes taking out communication systems as the bomb explodes causing mass panic as budlings are destroyed leaving behind an atomic mushroom cloud.
Mass panic sets in as Jimmy runs down the road to find Ruth as their family barricades themselves inside with Ruth in a state of shock. Ruth’s mothers last moments are her screaming for her son Michael as the bomb drops incinerating them and blowing up everything. The town is set ablaze by nuclear war, as in the immediately after the aftermath the government workers try to pick themselves up unsure of what happened. The film depicts the horrific aftereffects of a nuclear bomb with the workers dying, an old couple being injured and burring alive in their house and Ruth’s family left in a horrible state crying. A second explosion then occurs as communication becomes scrambled. The fallout dust settles on Sheffield as the radioactive radiation is blown across the area as Ruth’s dad is shown to have radiation sickness as he starts vomiting. The family go looking for Michael in the wreckage only to find his corpse, as the government station goes crazy trying to communicatee to the people to try and get a hold of the situation as people fight with the police over fuel.
Ruth’s family ration out food as ruth has a breakdown wishing her baby was dead, along with Michaels family wishing they were dead. The government workers have their office caved in as they can’t give people food supplies. An old couple in the film just want some water and have a breakdown as documentary picture show the aftermath of the bomb. People are forced to drink from radioactive water as ruth wanders the wasteland in a surreal sequence with destroyed buildings. People wonder around like zombies seemly in a daze as shown with a shocked woman cradling her dead baby. Ruth’s parents start losing track of time as the radioactive debris cuts out the heat and light making the temperature colder. Civil unrest settles amongst the people as all the want is food, held behind a fence of police guards as they fire gas and shoot a trespasser. People wonder into the hospital like zombies as they have tons of inured people. The hospital is overcrowded and disgusting with tones of sick people dying. The council ends up been cut off must cut of rations as people will die anyway. They all end up cracking under the various conditions as people loot David’s family and are shot by the police as people are put on reconstruction duty. Money ends up having so currency as work equals food and the more people die the more food exists. A random guy plays with the dead child’s game in a sick irony as the country can’t dispose the corpses in the UK continuing the nightmare.
Detention camps are set up for looters as normal people like a traffic warden becomes a guard. The police find the dead government officers as Ruth clutches her baby in her destroyed home. As exactions start happening people move to the countryside for food as mass deaths form fallout reach there peak. The film shows the desperation from people as they drink irradiated frozen water and try and get into a can like a caveman. The people’s response to the government telling people to go home ends in an uproar as the police people into a stranger’s house only for him to kick them out as people end up eating bread or soup. Ruth runs into Bob Jimmy’s friend and tires to have a connection but ~Ruth doesn’t answer as the bomb has destroyed people’s connections with other people. Ruth and Bob end up getting meat from a sheep and although worried about it being contaminated, they eat it anyway, as they try to have a conversation, but it is stilted as the bomb has destroyed their humanity. Ruth’s dream about a happy family is interrupted by the grim reality of a dead baby. People must restart agriculture harvesting by hand as due to fuel shortages farming equipment can’t be used. Ruth ends up giving birth to her baby herself in a farm barn ripping the umbilical cord with her teeth. What established at the begging of the film as the big happy moment for the characters is now shown as horrific. The scene becomes a messed-up version of a nativity with the film being set in Christmas with people in a barn with a screaming baby destroyed by what has happened. Old people end up dying during the winter as people including Ruth end up stealing grain and get shot at as she ends up purchasing a rat. The film again explains through documentary style narration as people are killed by the ultraviolet ray sunlight meaning to crops a grown and the population reaches its minimum.
In the films climax the film flashes forward ten years later with Ruth and her daughter Jane and when Ruth dies Jane shows no emotion as in this horrific world people have been brought up in a harsh environment where death is normal. Society ends up rebuilding itself a little but with limited technology as children watch a video about skeletons as no emotions are shown apart from the old woman watching the film with them as the kids are sort a piratical film like sowing. The film ends on a horrific final act. Jane Ruth’s daughter and two boys end up stealing food leading to one of the boys being killed and since Ruth doesn’t share the food with him, so he ends up raping her. The films ending is harrowing as Ruth wonders the destroyed wasteland and gives birth to a stillborn deformed baby in a harrowing mirrored quality to the begging of the film but instead of hope there is just devastation.
Threads is a horrific depiction of the real threat of nuclear warfare. The film showcases how easily society can collapse under nuclear war and that there is no hope for society to emerge from the ashes of nuclear holocaust.