Command and Control

Long Shot’s Involvement:

Theatrical Release on behalf of American Experience Films / PBS

Release Date:

September 14, 2016

Synopsis:

A chilling nightmare plays out at a Titan II missile complex in Arkansas in September, 1980. A worker accidentally drops a socket, puncturing the fuel tank of an intercontinental ballistic missile carrying the most powerful nuclear warhead in our arsenal, an incident which ignites a series of feverish efforts to avoid a deadly disaster. Directed by Robert Kenner (FOOD, INC.) and based on the critically acclaimed book by Eric Schlosser (FAST FOOD NATION), COMMAND AND CONTROL is a minute-by-minute account of this long-hidden story. Putting a camera where there was no camera that night, Kenner brings this nonfiction thriller to life with stunning original footage shot in a decommissioned Titan II missile silo. Eyewitness accounts — from the man who dropped the socket, to the man who designed the warhead, to the Secretary of Defense— chronicle nine hours of terror that prevented an explosion 600 times more powerful than Hiroshima.

New York Times Critics’ Pick

“Nerve-melting and riveting!” – ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY

“Will have your heart racing as fast as any Hollywood thriller!” – PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER

“Masterfully constructed! As white-knuckle suspenseful as any movie you are likely to see this year.” – ARTFORUM

“Combines Cold War-era thriller with post-apocalyptic nightmare…this one will stay with you for days.” – ROLLING STONE

“Riveting and dismaying… equal parts history lesson, cautionary tale, and nerve-rattling thriller.” – VARIETY

“Uncommonly gripping…Kenner has masterfully mined enough dramatic material from a near-catastrophe in Arkansas to fill a movie theater at the local mall.” – NEWSWEEK