World War III (film)

World War III (film)

Infobox Film
name = World War III
image_size = 200px
caption = Screenshot of a map showing the Soviet invasion over the Baltic Sea
director = Robert Stone
producer = Ulrich Lenze
writer = Ingo Helm
Robert Stone
narrator =
starring = Boris Leskin, Klaus Schleif, Christopher Wynkoop
music = John Kusiak
Caleb Sampson
cinematography = Matthias Haedecke
editing =
distributor = ZDF
released = 1998
runtime = 94 min.
country = flagicon|Germany Germany
language = GermanEnglish
budget =
website =
amg_id =
imdb_id = 0180657

"World War III" ("Der Dritte Weltkrieg") is a 1998 German television ZDF's mockumentary, directed by Robert Stone. It depicts what might have transpired had Soviet troops opened fire on demonstrators in Berlin in the fall of 1989 and precipitated a World War III. The film mixes real footage of world leaders such as Helmut Kohl and Mikhail Gorbachev with mock interviews of citizens, soldiers and political aides.

Plot synopsis

The movie is set in the autumn of 1989, with tensions rising within the German Democratic Republic. A GDR border guard notices an escape attempt across the Berlin Wall and is faced with the decision of whether to fire or not on the fleeing citizen. The escapee reaches West Berlin as the guard begins shooting. He hits the escapee and several Western citizens, causing a nearby police officer to return fire. This incident causes severe tensions between the GDR and the FRG.

Meanwhile, Mikhail Gorbachev's plane fails to arrive safely in Moscow, and the Soviet Union's leader is presumed dead, allowing hardliners to seize power. As civil unrest in the GDR reaches a critical level, the new Soviet leadership decides to suppress it with force. The NATO high command notices the mobilization of GDR troops and the redeployment of other Warsaw Pact forces, including a blockade of West berlin. Fearing an impeding attack on that city or West Germany, it also mobilizes, leading to the first military action when reinforcements clash with another Soviet blockade in the Atlantic Ocean. The situation escalates when forces of the Warsaw Pact enter West Germany from the Baltic Sea and at the Fulda Gap. They are eventually stopped and forced to retreat to the Polish border, leaving NATO forces in control of Berlin and most of East Germany.

Soviet surveillance systems detect unverified ICBM launches (as they were prone to in reality) but due to the escalated situation the new leader, fearing the worst, decides not to wait for additional verification. The movie ends with a mock live report in front of the White House with air raid sirens heard in the background. The frantic journalist reports rumors of a Soviet attack and of a nuclear counterstrike authorized by the President of the United States. Video and audio is cut in mid-sentence, leaving only the snow of a lost signal onscreen.

External links

* [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FuDgNgUgAH8 "Der Dritte Weltkrieg"] (in 9 installments) (German)


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