War Games stars Brat Packer Ally Sheedy as well as possible Brat Packer and now best known as significant other of the horsey one from Sex and The City, Matthew Broderick. It was released in 1983 and was way ahead of it’s time because of the computer technology that was used. The movie was a critical as well as a box office success. It cost $12m to make but grossed over $79m after just five months in the US and Canada. War Games received generally positive reviews and was nominated for three Academy Awards, including Best Cinematography, Writing and Screenplay.

Broderick plays David Lightman, a lazy student but motivated hacker. When his grades at school start to slide, David hacks into the school computer and improves them somewhat. At the same time, he also does the favour for classmate Jennifer Mack, played by Sheedy. While dialing numbers from his computer to find information on games one day, David stumbles across a computer which does not identify itself. This is where the movie really begins in earnest and after a time it is revealed the computer actually has the power to start World War III. From here, David and Jennifer go on an adventure, trying to stop the potential disaster.

War Games Rating

Not a bad movie at all and well ahead of it’s time, War Games gets a Brat Pack rating of 7/10.

War Games Characters

Jennifer – Played by Ally Sheedy

David – Played by Matthew Broderick

War Games Trivia

Both a Galaga and a Galaxian machine were delivered to Matthew Broderick’s home by the studio, which gave him two months to practice for the arcade scene.

Martin Brest was the original director of War Games. A number of the scenes he shot are still in the movie.

Professor Stephen Hawking was the writers’ main inspiration for the character of Professor Stephen Falken. The studio approached Hawking about appearing in the film but he felt his disability might be being exploited.

War Games Links

Interesting article on War Games from Wired.com

War Games Review from 1983 by Roger Ebert