Last night, my fiancé and I watched A House Built With Dynamite on Netflix, and honestly, it surprised me in the best way. I won’t spoil anything, but it’s one of those movies that sticks with you — the kind that makes you sit in silence for a minute when the credits roll.
What I found so interesting was how closely it mirrored a real-life story I once heard — the story of Stanislav Petrov, a Soviet officer who faced an unthinkable decision during the Cold War. One night in 1983, alarms in his command center showed that U.S. nuclear missiles were heading toward the Soviet Union. He had to decide whether to report it and launch a retaliatory strike or trust his gut. Petrov chose not to report it — and it turned out the system had malfunctioned. His instinct likely prevented a nuclear war.
Thank God
*heavy sigh of relief*
Anyways, that movie really made me think about that story — and how moments of pressure can change the course of history. It’s fun to sit back and watch something that makes you think. I’ll admit, I’m a little bit of a nerd, so getting to see the ins and outs of how the U.S. government operates in situations like DEFCON 1 and DEFCON 2 was fascinating to me.
There’s something thrilling about those “end of the world” action movies — they let us escape reality for a bit while still forcing us to face some of the deeper questions about the world we live in. All in all, it was a great movie — full of tension, suspense, and just the right amount of chaos. So grab your popcorn and enjoy the ride. 🍿
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