National Theatre Live: Dr. Strangelove

If you are a Dr Strangelove fan then you should enjoy this. There are some direct lifts from the film but a lot of material is missing and replaced with new scenes - this is due to the limitations of the theatre and has been done very well and doesn't detract from the story too much.

Steve Coogan does have his 'carry pants' on here and does a lot of the heavy lifting but he is ably assisted by the characters of : Jack D Ripper, General Turgidson , Faceman and of course Colonel Bat Guano of which no rendition of this would be the same.

A very good production only like limited by it being theatre based rather than a film.

It would have been one star but for Steve Coogan. But even there it felt a bit of "let's see how clever we can be". Poor jokes badly executed and the set, to put it politely, was a mess. The attempt to bring humour and relate it to the Trump era was totally misplaced in that the present reality is outgunning the fiction. So many of the jokes had been done so many times before that I was waiting for Strangelove to say "Don't mention the war". If I had left at the interval would I have regretted it - I don't think so. Not much more to say really. Moral of the story - don't mess with original genius.

Dr. Strangelove translates from the big screen to the stage very easily with a hilarious adaptation that's got laughs in every single scene. It remains highly quotable, topical and kinda scary thanks to the darkly comic ending, supported by the immaculate staging and set design that's a joy to watch switch from scene to scene. The pacing is airtight to the extent it didn't even need an interval because its ticking clock structure is just so engaging.

The extremely exaggerated nature of almost everyone's performances is a natural fit. Steve Coogan is the main attraction as he portrays four characters in an equally funny yet individually distinct fashion and all the costume changes happening off screen are insanely impressive even with the gaps in his screen time to account for it. Giles Terera as an especially dimwitted general is a major highlight who gets a fair few of the biggest and best laughs.

You would think that a collaboration between Steve Coogan and Armando Iannucci of a Stanley Kubrick hit would be a natural remake.

Coogan and Iannuci have formidable track-records. Both seperately and together.

However, this version, regardless of the expense and prestige of The National Theatre Comany production make for a toothless, two hour plus yawn.

Steve Coogan began his career as a potent impressionist/satirist. Here, he cannot even come close to filling Peter Sellars' many roles in the 1964 original. Nor does this " explosively funny satire" ever approach explosiveness, or even satire.

You are better off visiting Coogan's fertile body of past work. The same with Iannucci's many previous successes.

This version of Dr Strangelove is a dog turd and tonic that will leave you wondering why they bothered to make it.

This stage adaptation of Dr Strangelove is an ambitious and entertaining production, though it's important to recognise that it isn't a direct match for the film - nor should it be expected to be. While it carries the essence of the original, some of that unmistakable Kubrick magic is inevitably absent. The satire, too, feels less biting at times, not because it fails, but because the world has edged so much closer to the absurdity it once mocked. Satire loses some of its punch when reality catches up with it.

There are a number of direct lifts from the film, but a fair amount of material is missing or replaced with new scenes. These changes are a result of the limitations of theatre, but they've been handled deftly and don't detract significantly from the overall story.

Steve Coogan certainly carries the production, but he's supported by strong performances from the characters of Jack D. Ripper, General Turgidson, Faceman and Colonel Bat Guano.

All in all, it's a very good production, cleverly adapted for the stage. While it may not fully capture the cinematic brilliance of Kubrick's film, fans of Dr Strangelove should still find much to enjoy.