History NightmareFuel / Threads

** This also sets an unsettling precedent: on the slim chance that later generations don’t simply die out, after being raised in a uncivilized and unforgiving world where language and comfort are non-existent, this basically means that mankind would eventually be reduced to little more than animals. Not only has most of humanity died, but their sentience would likely devolve as well.

* The biggest piece of NightmareFuel about this film: ''everything you see in it would really happen in the event of a nuclear war''. This movie is almost non-fiction with how heavily it [[ShownTheirWork did its homework]]. After all the nukes drop, there won't even be the violent glamour of ''VideoGame/{{Fallout}}'' or ''Film/MadMax''-style adventures in or exploration of a new post-apocalyptic world; we'll all just '''die'''. [[FateWorseThanDeath And it sure as hell wouldn't be a quick or painless death, either]].

** This also sets an unsettling precedent: on the slim chance that later generations don’t simply die out, after being raised in a uncivilized and unforgiving world where language and comfort are nonexistent, this basically means that mankind would eventually be reduced to animals. Not only has most of humanity died, but their sentience would likely devolve as well.

** The group of officials in the town hall last longer than most of the cast, but tensions begin to fray as it becomes evident that nobody is coming to rescue them and that the attack is far worse than they assumed, as well as the collapsed four floors of the town hall burying them in the bunker. A few weeks after the attack shows most of them walking around with visible facial hair, covered in dust and debris, arguing with each other as they attempt to figure out a way to help people. They all end up suffocating after using up all the oxygen underground, and are later [[YouAreTooLate dug to by a group of rescuers long after they're already dead]].

* When Ruth has to give birth to her daughter, Jane, in a freezing cold barn and cut the umbilical cord with her teeth. Alone, and on Christmas Day. That's something no mother should ''ever'' have to go through.

-->'''Vicky Ireland''' [[note]]''Words and Pictures'' presenter in the first half of the 1980s[[/note]]: There was the skeleton of... a cat! A cat's... skeleton!

-->'''Mr. Kemp''': I wish I could swap places with him.

** The group of officials in the town hall last longer than most of the cast, but tensions begin to fray as it becomes evident that nobody is coming to rescue them and that the attack is far worse than they assumed, as well as the collapsed four floors of the town hall burying them in the bunker. A few weeks after the attack shows most of them walking around with visible facial hair, covered in dust and debris, arguing with each other as they attempt to figure out a way to help people. They all end up suffocating underground, and are later [[YouAreTooLate dug to by a group of rescuers long after they're already dead]].

*** Also, when Ruth finally returns home after fleeing in the wake of her grandmother's death to look for Jimmy. Rats and dogs are eating the covered corpse of her grandmother. She opens the door to the basement shelter she left her mother and father in, only to find them long dead after they were murdered by looters for their supplies. We don't even see the corpses, we just hear the sound of hundreds of flies buzzing on their decomposing bodies, which is nightmare enough.

** The group of officials in the town hall last longer than most of the cast, but tensions begin to fray as it becomes evident that nobody is coming to rescue them and that the attack is far worse than they assumed, as well as the collapsed four floors of the town hall burying them in the bunker. A few weeks after the attack shows most of them walking around with visible facial hair, covered in dust and debris, arguing with each other as they attempt to figure out a way to help people. They all end up suffocating to death and are later found by a group of rescuers.

-->'''Doctor Talbot''': I don't know... a few slices of bread, some soup... [[DeliciousDaydream a lamb chop, a treacle tart]], a few pints of beer... ''[[PrecisionFStrike BASTARDS]]!!''

-->'''Official''': I don't know... a few slices of bread, some soup... [[DeliciousDaydream a lamb chop, a treacle tart]], a few pints of beer... ''[[PrecisionFStrike BASTARDS]]!!''

-->'''Mr. Kemp''': I don't know... a few slices of bread, some soup... [[DeliciousDaydream a lamb chop, a treacle tart]], a few pints of beer... ''[[PrecisionFStrike BASTARDS]]!!''

* [[https://youtu.be/xYme0O60V28 The scene]] when you realize that all the education that the next generation is getting comes from old pre-school learning videos[[note]]From the BBC Schools series ''Words & Pictures'': the original version of the 1982 episode that appears in ''Threads'' can be [[https://youtu.be/H3tHJxS7qMQ?t=620 seen here.]][[/note]], with several children and an old woman seen in a dark, filthy room and huddled around a single small black-and-white TV/VCR showing one. The literacy rate will become extremely low, if not completely non-existent. The woman mouthing along to the words by heart is an especially tragic sight.
-->'''''Words & Pictures'' Narrator:''' There was the skeleton of... a cat! A cat's... skeleton!

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[[caption-width-right:350: Trust this film when it demonstrates that [[SincerityMode this is the closest you'll]] '''''[[SincerityMode ever]]''''' [[SincerityMode want to come to nuclear war]].]]

* The HANDEL system warning announcing a nuclear strike is inbound, practically the moment the movie takes off the gloves.

* During the nuclear attack sequence, the panicked screaming of everyone on the streets in Sheffield is ''very'' haunting. Especially the screaming that can be heard during the shot of the mushroom cloud over Sheffield after nearby RAF Finningley is hit.

** Apparently the artificial method they used to recreate the mushroom cloud - a giant smoke bomb set off near RAF Finningley - led to genuine panic on the streets. People thought an ''actual nuclear weapon'' had just been detonated. Could've been a highly disturbing bit of EnforcedMethodActing had they been rolling the film.

** Actually, it's even worse than that. This film depicts a ''best''-case scenario, and it's been described increasingly as such by many critics and researchers. After all, there are still a few people left alive after thirteen years by the end of the film... chances are, the true outcome would be far, ''far'' worse.

* The British Government's actual ''WesternAnimation/ProtectAndSurvive'' public information films that the film were used, as what the film presents is pretty much what we were expected to do if the five-minute warning went off. Two of the short films are available [[http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/films/1964to1979/filmpage_warnings.htm here]] and [[http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/films/1964to1979/filmpage_casualties.htm here]]; excerpts include "''If anyone dies while you are kept in your fallout room, move the body to another room in the house ... If you have had a body in the house for more than five days, and if it is safe to go outside, then you should bury the body for the time being in a trench, or cover it with earth, and mark the spot of the burial''". Terrifying in their own right, even more so if you consider the circumstances in which the government would have assented to broadcast these.

--> '''ATTACK WARNING RED. ATTACK WARNING RED.'''

** The first attack is an exo-airburst, releasing an {{EMP}} that knocks out a majority of power across Europe.

** There was a woman who was so scared that she [[BringMyBrownPants wet herself]].

** The third attack is arguably the worst. Sheffield is hit, primarily its economic targets, and considering that a chemical plant was a target, that's unfathomably scary.
* When Sheffield is hit we see humans on fire and a cat's face horrifically distorted.

* The amount exchanged between the attack? ''3000 megatons''. To put that into perspective, that's the amount of [[HiroshimaAsAUnitOfMeasure 200,000 Little Boys]], or 60 Tsar Bombas. And ''210 megatons'' were dropped on the UK in total. If that was only the UK, [[FridgeHorror how many megatons were the other countries hit with]]?

** The overall attack.

** Apparently the artificial method they used to recreate the mushroom cloud; a giant smoke bomb set off near RAF Finningley; led to genuine panic on the streets. People thought an ''actual nuclear weapon'' had just been detonated. Could've been a highly disturbing bit of EnforcedMethodActing had they been rolling the film.

''The Day After'''s ending, while a DownerEnding, had some instance of [[RayOfHopeEnding hope with the persistence of human empathy and kindness]]. In ''Threads''? None of that. Only showing the pure horror of the aftermath 13 years after the initial attack and [[DownerEnding snuffing out hope for humanity's survival]].

With its depictions of civilization after a nuclear attack, the fallout's impact even years after the initial attack, and the overall bleak nature of watching completely innocent people become victims to numerous ailments of nuclear war, this is basically ''NightmareFuel: TheMovie''...

* The biggest piece of NightmareFuel about this film: ''it would really happen in the event of a nuclear war''. This movie is almost non-fiction with how heavily it [[ShownTheirWork did its homework]]. After all the nukes drop, there won't even be the violent glamour of ''VideoGame/{{Fallout}}'' or ''Film/MadMax''-style adventures in or exploration of a new post-apocalyptic world; we'll all just '''die'''. [[FateWorseThanDeath And it sure as hell wouldn't be a quick or painless death, either]].
** Actually, it's even ''worse'' than that. This film depicts a ''best''-case scenario, and it's been described increasingly as such by many critics and researchers. After all, there are still a few people left alive after thirteen years by the end of the film... chances are, the true outcome would be far, ''far'' worse.

* [[https://youtu.be/xYme0O60V28 The scene]] when you realize that all the education that the next generation is getting comes from old pre-school learning videos, with several children and an old woman seen in a dark, filthy room and huddled around a single small black-and-white TV showing one. The literacy rate will become extremely low, if not completely non-existent. The woman mouthing along to the words by heart is an especially tragic sight.

* Because there is no way to properly dispose of bodies, millions of corpses are left to rot out in the open, which brings rats spreading diseases such as Cholera and the Bubonic Plague.

** The messages during the attack purely emphasize everyone going FromBadToWorse.

When you watch a movie that realistically depicts the decay of humanity after a nuclear attack, there's no doubt that there will be some nightmares. This is basically ''NightmareFuel: TheMovie''...

Spoilers below.

* The biggest piece of NightmareFuel about this film: ''it would really happen in the event of a nuclear war.'' This movie is almost non-fiction with how heavily it [[ShownTheirWork shows its work.]] After all the nukes drop, there won't even be the violent glamor of ''VideoGame/{{Fallout}}'' or ''Film/MadMax''-style adventures in or exploration of a new post-apocalyptic world; we'll all just '''die'''. [[FateWorseThanDeath And it sure as hell wouldn't be a quick or painless death, either]].

* The HANDEL system warning announcing a nuclear strike is inbound.

* When Sheffield is hit we see humans on fire and a cat's face horrifically distorted.
* The deathly silence, when the flash of heat is sweeping through the city and we see everything melting and Mr. Kemp desperately trying to put out his burning wife. Then the blast hits and everything is destroyed.
* During the nuclear attack sequence, the panicked screaming of everyone on the streets in Sheffield is ''very'' haunting. Especially the shrieking that can be heard during the shot of the mushroom cloud over Sheffield after nearby RAF Finningley is hit.

** The [[HeroicBSoD absolutely dumbstruck reaction]] that Bob, Jimmy's friend, has to the explosion over RAF Finningley is haunting as well as absolutely tragic. [[DeerInTheHeadlights He can only stare in silent horror at the resulting mushroom cloud]], visibly broken by the realization that everything he'd most feared has come to pass.
-->'''Bob''': Jesus ''Christ'', they've done it. (''[[StillSucksThumb quietly, holding his thumb to his mouth in shock]]'') They've done it...!

* When you realize that all the education that the next generation is getting comes from an old learning video. The literacy rate will become extremely low, if not flat-out non-existent.
* Because of the vast amounts of atmospheric smoke caused by nuclear detonations, the smoke blocks out the sun, causing temperatures to plummet. This ends up causing crops to not being harvested for several years. [[HopeSpot Fortunately, a harvester is found to still be of use]]. Unfortunately, since there is no way to get gas, the narrator says it is one of the last times modern machines will be used to harvest crops. After that, all crops have to be tended to by hand, or on the off-chance they can be found, using [[BreakOutTheMuseumPiece antique coal-fired traction engines]].

* The biggest piece of NightmareFuel about this film: ''it would really happen in the event of a nuclear war.'' This movie is almost non-fiction with how heavily it [[ShownTheirWork shows its work.]] After all the nukes drop, there won't even be the violent glamor of ''VideoGame/{{Fallout}}'' or ''Film/MadMax''-style adventures in a post-apocalyptic world; we'll all just '''die'''. [[FateWorseThanDeath And it sure as hell wouldn't be a quick or painless death, either]].

* There is a certain element of this [[SarcasmMode delightful]] piece of television which has been overlooked in its nightmare-enabling capabilities; it often traumatizes people who first saw it to this very day. Considering it was first broadcast in the mid 1980s [[note]]Aside from the original airing in 1984, it was shown in 1985 as part of a series of programmes marking the 40th anniversary of the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.[[/note]] and was then not broadcast again until 2003, that speaks volumes.

* When you realize that all the education that the next generation is getting comes from an old learning video. The literacy rate will become extremely low, if not flat out non-existent.
* Because of the vast amounts of atmospheric smoke caused by nuclear detonations, the smoke blocks out the sun, causing temperatures to plummet. This ends up causing crops to not being harvested for several years. Fortunately, a harvester is found to still be of use. Unfortunately, since there is no way to get gas, the narrator says it is one of the last times modern machines will be used to harvest crops. After that, all crops have to be tended to by hand.
* When the smoke eventually clears, it has caused severe damage to the ozone layer, and has greatly upped the chances of cataracts and cancer.

* As a result of the nationwide devastation, Britian's population severally falls from 60.80 million to 11 million.

** What happened between Jane and the boy almost certainly wasn't an isolated incident. By this stage in the story, the oldest of the kids born into the post-nuclear world are reaching sexual maturity, but do not know how to cope with the resulting urges and, because of their near total lack of education and limited language skills, are unable to ask or give consent. So young boys are growing up thinking they can force themselves on girls; who, like, Jane then have to give birth to mutated babies. As more and more of the pre-war generation die off, there will be fewer people who are in a position to so much as try to educate these kids not to engage in this kind of behaviour. And, if any of the second generation of post-war babies which result survive into adolescence, the pattern will then repeat itself.

* There is a certain element of this [[SarcasmMode delightful]] piece of television which has been overlooked in its nightmare-enabling capabilities; it often traumatizes people who first saw it to this very day. Considering it was first broadcast in the mid 1980s [[note]]Aside from the original airing in 1984, it was shown in 1985 as part of a series of programmes to mark the 40th anniversary of the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.[[/note]] and was then not broadcast again until 2003, that speaks volumes.

* There is a certain element of this [[SarcasmMode delightful]] piece of television which has been overlooked in its nightmare-enabling capabilities; it often traumatizes people who first saw it to this very day. Considering it was first broadcast in 1984 and was then not broadcast again until 2003, that speaks volumes.

-->'''Bob''': Jesus ''Christ'', they've done it. (''[[StillSucksThumb quietly, holding his thumb to his mouth in shock]]'') They've done it...

* Because there is no way to properly dispose of bodies, millions of corpses are left to rot out in the open, which brings rats spreading disease.

* The biggest piece of NightmareFuel about this film: ''it would really happen in the event of a nuclear war.'' This movie is almost non-fiction with how heavily it [[ShownTheirWork shows its work.]] After all the nukes drop, there won't even be the violent glamor of ''VideoGame/{{Fallout}}'' or ''Film/MadMax''-style adventures in a post-apocalyptic world; we'll all just '''die'''. [[FateWorseThanDeath And it sure as hell wouldn't be a quick death, either]].

* The biggest piece of NightmareFuel about this film: ''it would really happen in the event of a nuclear war.'' This movie is almost non-fiction with how heavily it [[ShownTheirWork shows its work.]] After all the nukes drop, there won't even be the violent glamor of ''VideoGame/{{Fallout}}'' or ''Film/MadMax'' style adventures; we'll all just ''die''. ''[[FateWorseThanDeath And it sure as hell wouldn't be a quick death, either]]''.
** Actually, it's even ''worse'' than that. This film depicts a ''best''-case scenario, and it's been described increasingly as such by many critics and researchers. After all, there are still a few people left alive after thirteen years by the end of the film... chances are, the true outcome would be ''far, far'' worse.

* For many Britons (especially those who live in/near Sheffield), this film hit close to home and it hit hard. Those OopNorth are so used to seeing [[BigApplesauce New York]]/[[HollywoodCalifornia Los Angeles]]/[[TokyoIsTheCenterOfTheUniverse Tokyo]]/[[BritainIsOnlyLondon London]] blown up that it doesn't affect them, but when [[AliensInCardiff it's a much smaller city in Yorkshire]]...

** The camera doesn't hold on most things in the hospital for too long, but for a British TV movie released in 1984 - the same year the Video Recordings Act that banned VideoNasties was passed - we see some [[MeatgrinderSurgery absolutely horrendous things]], including pus-soaked bandages from survivors with infected wounds, people having water salted with SAXA table salt [[WorstAid applied to wounds in lieu of antibiotics]], people having shards of glass removed from their flesh with tweezers in close-up, and perhaps worst of all, a man screaming ''very believably'' as one of his limbs is hacked off. '''[[SkipTheAnaesthetic Without any anaesthetic]]'''. The way the scene is edited in such a disorienting way leaves you wondering what the hell else is happening in that room. NothingIsScarier indeed.

** Ruth's death itself. Poor, poor Ruth has aged fifty years in thirteen, and has been blinded by radiation. The cataracts on her eyes are disturbingly realistic for a low budget made-for-TV movie from the 80s.

** What happened between Jane and the boy almost certainly wasn't an isolated incident. By this stage in the story, the oldest of the kids born into the post-nuclear world are reaching sexual maturity, but do not know how to cope with the resulting urges and, because of their near total lack of education and limited language skills, are unable to ask or give consent. So young boys are growing up thinking they can force themselves on girls, who like Jane then have to give birth to deformed babies. As more and more of the pre-war generation die off, there will be fewer people who are in a position to so much as try to educate these kids not to engage in this kind of behaviour. And, if any of the second generation of post-war babies which result survive into adolescence, the pattern will then repeat itself.