I'm glad I didn't see this when I was 10 or somethin

Seriously disturbing. I love the way it starts very low-key; just a few news bulletins in the background as everyone goes about their normal life. Once the bomb drops, it gets very grim very fast, but even then the focus on normal everyday people is what makes it so scary. Some of the special effects look a bit dated, and there are a few moments of dodgy acting, but that doesn't detract much from the overall horror portrayed in this film.

Very well done, and appropriately bleak and depressing as hell. I'm pretty grateful that I never had to live with the specter of nuclear armageddon hanging over my head.

Shockingly bleak without being sensationalistic or melodramatic. Shot in a very flat style and has a monotone narration that makes it feel almost like a documentary, which adds to the feeling of realism. The sequence when England gets nuked is particularly disturbing, with long lingering shots of corpses burning among the rubble. It's amazingly dark, and offers zero hope at the end, I can't believe they showed this on British TV in primetime...it must've scared the shit out of people.

Kind of the British version of "The Day After", from the point of view that they both scared the bejeezus out of everyone. This one is much more documentary-like though instead of dramatic. Both well-worth seeing.

The greatest aspect of this grim and realistic post-apoc scenario is the local perspective. The focus is kept on the average person and nothing is revealed that is outside their claustrophobic view. That makes it more personal than most political nuke movies.

Deeply disturbing and depressing in every possible way. Unfortunately because of that, this film can only be seen once.

Bleak beyond anything I've ever seen. Its realism, deliberate pacing, and strong emphasis on characterization combine to make it as harrowing as it is incredibly sad. The film's unremitting hopelessness and grim atmosphere may turn off some viewers, but for those of you who brave the emotional scars, you'll be rewarded with a devastatingly powerful film. Watch it together with Fail-Safe.

Very bleak but I think I prefer the conceptually similar The War Game by Watkins or the more personal When the Wind Blows.

Jesus christ, I'm not sure if I should build a bomb shelter or just go ahead and kill myself. I'm probably better off dead anyway, right?

Pulls no punches. There are no happy Hollywood reunions between separated lovers, mothers and sons. There's no false hope. There's no '10 years later and society is back on its feet' wrap up. Petty squabbles between power-hungry egomaniacs with small members and large missiles result in death, destruction, and a shortage of can openers. I will repeat what other reviewers have said: if every 12 year old kid was made to watch this, the world would probably be a safer place.

Dark, depressing, horrible vision of what would be the consequences of nuclear attack. No Mad Max or Book of Eli bullshit, but rather a disturbing look at what would truly happen. Not for those of weak tummy.

Depressing depiction of the aftermath of a nuclear war. I wish more films ended the way this did.

Whereas a film like "Night and Fog" looks at the horror mankind has already caused, "Threads" looks at what horrors mankind might cause. I think the looser connection to reality makes it somewhat less emotionally effective, especially having grown up after the Cold War. However, I might have been traumatized for life if I watched it as a British teen in the 1980s.

Another one of those films I think was made brilliantly, but which I'd never choose to watch again. Harrowing is not the word...

Depressing, grim, and heart-breaking film about the true effects of nuclear war, shown through the eyes of 'average' British citizens. I thought the visuals, acting, and general progression of events leading up to and after the bombs fall to be very high quality for a TV-movie from the mid 80s.

Scary! And depressing.

Terrifying account of a post-nuclear-strike Britain. Beats "The Day After" in spades.

A sobering cry against nuclear war, this is a message film that really does get its message across, but does much more, being a bleak, powerful and heart-chilling experience.

Depressed, scared and messed me up for a few days. Exactly as was intended. The fact that the movie is a bit older only added to the surreal vibe of this nightmarish scenario. If you like unending bleakness, you'll love Threads. I know I did.

The world would a better place if every kid of, say, 15 were forced to watch "Threads". There is nothing to review here, actually. This is not a film. It is a devastatingly powerful experience. If you have not seen it, please, do, but be warned. It leaves scars.

I remember this was screened on british television heavily cut but still terrifying.Great film.

Britain's answer to The Day After and Testament. It out-bleaks both of them, but the voice-over narration doesn't work very well.

Anyone who secretly harbors a desire to live in a post-apocalyptic wasteland à la Mad Max should watch this and come to their senses. Threads is grim, but alas, extremely realistic. And it doesn't matter that the acting, direction or special effects aren't much to speak of, for you won't think about them for as much as a second once the bomb explodes (which, admittedly, is perhaps a bit too far into the movie).

Genuinely traumatizing.

Very suspenseful, very effective piece of work, even all these years later when nuclear holocaust is so much less likely. That being said, I respectfully disagree with what folks have said about how realistic this all is. For one thing, all the "ordinary" people are far less stupid and far less sinless than I've known real ordinary people to be. For another, there's not a single word about cannibalism even though people have turned to it under less dire circumstances than depicted here

Enough to put you off H-bombs for life.

Scary stuff. Well researched, well crafted. Some people need to watch this as a reality check, because we tend to underestimate the effects of a possible nuclear holocaust. Today it would be even worse, as the population density is much higher and there are more powerful nuclear bombs.

THIS is what "The day after" should have been

A great, grim and utterly nightmarish post-nuclear strike dramatization that left me scarred for eternity. It's something everybody should see at least once.

Belongs, together with "Spoorloos" (1988) and "Night and Fog" (1955), to one of the most disturbing films I've ever seen. The subject matter is one to think about, the imagery is terrifying, and the experience is one you won't soon forget (some of the images still linger in my mind). I recommend this film in the sense that it's something you should witness at least once, and talk about afterwards, and I'm sure that was the director's intention all along...