Watching a film as a child is a surefire way to develop a lifelong fear of something if you ask me.
Am I a fully grown adult? Yes. Am I still terrified of beetles because of The Mummy? Also yes.
So, many like me can trace their fears to certain films, whether it be being terrified of trucks full of logs because of Final Destination 2, or being terrified of your neighbours because your sister tricked you into watching Disturbia far too young.
Advert
Definitely not me, just an overly specific example.
Some viewers are joining me in this film-based-fear – and are saying that their childhood fear can be traced back to ‘the most depressing film ever made’.
This look back has come after it was shown on TV last night for only the fourth time ever.
Advert
The film in question is Threads, and one viewer tweeted this last night after watching it:
“Just finished watching Threads which was on TV for only the 4th time in 40 years this evening.
“All that childhood fear of nuclear annihilation can probably be traced back to this film. Terrifying and bleak.”
The movie was released in 1984, at the height of fears around nuclear war.
Advert
Threads sees Sheffield hit by a nuclear blast after war breaks out between the US and The Soviet Union.
The aftermath shown in the film is horrifying, with others pointed to how utterly bleak the movie is, and how terrified it has left them.
One fan tweeted: “Should not have watched Threads before bed. Everyone always comments on how unremittingly f*cking bleak it is but that really doesn't prepare you for how unremittingly f*cking bleak it is.”
Another replied saying: “Did you see it as a child in the 80s? Unremittingly f*cking bleak is an understatement.”
A fan also tweeted: “40 years and still one of the most horrifying things I have ever seen #Threads”.
Advert
A second said: “To those watching #Threads for the first time tonight on BBC4….sleep well!”
This video fairly summed up the reactions of most last night watching for the first time.
One 9/10 review on IMDb saw someone clearly affected by these same fears mentioned above, as they said: “I have to say it is absolutely terrifying and utterly terrifying in the extreme.
“This could have actually happened! I was impressed by the way the film conveyed what it would be like if thousands of megatons of atomic bomb was dropped on the U.K. Normal life comes to an abrupt stop.
Advert
“One minute people are shopping in their local supermarket, going to the pub and wallpapering their new flat and suddenly they are plunged into Hell.
“Civilisation is blown back into the stone age.
“Since the Cold War ended people have stopped being frightened of nuclear weapons.
“Everybody in every country should watch this film and realise that if there ever was a nuclear war, still possible with growing tensions between a superpower and its rivals, those left alive would wish they had been caught in the blasts and killed outright.”
If you fancy a cheery weekend viewing, Threads is on BBC iPlayer now.
Topics: Film, TV and Film, BBC
Michael Slavin