10 Best Apocalyptic Horror Movies You Need To See
5. Threads (1984)
In the early '80s, humanity was on the verge of a real-life apocalypse that could happen with the simple press of a button as tensions between the US and USSR intensified.
1984 saw British filmmaker and documentarian Mick Jackson (who’d go on to direct The Bodyguard) envision what life would be like if the UK were hit with a sudden nuclear warhead. The result was Threads, a shoestring, kitchen sink drama that premiered on the BBC on 23 September '84. Its impact was so startling that this day was dubbed “the night the country didn’t sleep”.
Events begin on a mundane note. Young lovers Ruth (Karen Meagher) and Jimmy (Reece Dinsdale) are swept up in romance despite their opposing social backgrounds. Ruth is pregnant and the pair have a bright future ahead of them.
However, news bulletins highlighting rising political turmoil suggest that something devastating is about to happen. And then, at the 46-minute mark, terror strikes.
The first bomb hits, plunging society into chaos. The bombing sequence itself is realistically horrifying, but it’s Jackson’s chilling vision of the fallout that will remain etched in viewers’ memories.
Despite it's small budget, Threads holds nothing back in showing how horrible a nuclear apocalypse would be.