the funniest film about chaos since Dr. Insólito

The Independent

La Jornada Newspaper
Saturday, October 25, 2025, p. 8

In June, Jeffrey Goldberg, editor in chief of The Atlantic, published an essay warning of what he called “nuclear roulette.”

“As a species, we are not particularly good at making reasonable decisions under extreme pressure in matters of life and death,” he wrote.

The new and electrifying thriller by Kathryn Bigelow not only illustrates that idea, she makes it her narrative core.

The premise is simple: an out-of-control nuclear weapon is speeding toward Chicago.

As panic and disbelief grip the country, America’s military and political leaders are frantically trying to stop the attack and formulate an appropriate response against whoever pushed the button.

A single miscalculation could lead to total annihilation.

A house of dynamite serves as a grim – and timely – warning about the renewed danger of nuclear proliferation. At the same time, it can be read as the most entertaining film Hollywood has produced about potential mass destruction since Dr. Unusualde Stanley Kubrick.

Unlike Kubrick, Bigelow does not resort to humor, satirical or otherwise. Instead, it delivers a tense film, which puts the viewer on the edge of the seat from the first minutes and keeps the pressure constantly increasing.

German composer Volker Bertelmann’s ominous score, loaded with high, dissonant strings, amplifies that feeling of constant discomfort.

It’s clear that the filmmakers did their homework. The film immerses the viewer in a world of acronyms and technical jargon: ICBM (intercontinental ballistic missiles), GBI (ground interceptors), among many others, without losing clarity.

The action takes place almost entirely in cramped situation rooms and emergency operations centers. And yet, thanks to Bigelow’s narrative pulse, a film where almost everything is reduced to people talking manages to be absorbing, urgent and full of suspense.

Kathryn Bigelow pays meticulous attention to body language. As the missile approaches the continental United States, the protagonists’ bodies tense. Almost everyone crosses their arms. Some play with their wedding rings nervously. Officials and politicians frown, their faces lengthening with each new update. There are plenty of close-ups of sweaty managers, faces full of anxiety. As viewers, we don’t just see it: we feel it.

The script, intelligently structured by Noah Oppenheim, tells the same events from multiple perspectives and locations, which intensifies the tension. Idris Elba, as the president of the United States, does not appear on screen for much of the first act. We only hear him on the other end of the phone, while his team, trapped between fear and uncertainty, details the available options.

The film introduces brief but effective moments into the private lives of some key characters: Rebecca Ferguson plays Liv Walker, a senior civil servant with a sick son. Jared Harris, as Secretary of Defense, appears playing golf, while trying to maintain contact with his daughter. Tracy Letts plays a commander obsessed with the baseball game the night before. And Greta Lee, the North Korea expert, spends the day with her son at a reenactment of the Battle of Gettysburg. The irony is evident.

At first, disbelief reigns when the alarm sirens sound. Even after confirming that the threat is real, officials assume that the military will handle the problem. Shouldn’t America’s technological might be able to neutralize a nuclear bomb?

But that security fades quickly. Soon comes a relentless sinking feeling: no defense system seems to work.

And when the chaos escalates, black humor inevitably sneaks in – intentional or not – because the situation is so extreme, so absurd, that it seems like a parody. Some lines of dialogue – such as “there is no plan B” or “in just over seven minutes we will lose the city of Chicago” – could have come from an 80s disaster movie.

“It’s crazy,” a character shouts towards the end. “No, it’s reality,” they answer.

17 years ago, Kathryn Bigelow made history by becoming the first woman to win the Oscar for Best Director for Live on the edge (2008). Con A house of dynamitewhether or not she wins her second Oscar, confirms that she remains a unique filmmaker when it comes to creating intelligent, urgent, adrenaline-charged dramas.