Threads (1984)

In the heart of the 1980s, amidst the frosty throes of the Cold War, we find Ruth Beckett and Jimmy Kemp, residents of Sheffield, a bustling British city defined by its steel production and a significant R.A.F. base. Their lives revolve around the joyous anticipation of their impending nuptials and the arrival of their firstborn. Their blissful domesticity, however, is juxtaposed against the escalating global tensions as the Soviet Union brazenly sends troops into Iran, determined to transform it into a Soviet satellite state. As NATO, including the United States and the United Kingdom, vehemently denounces this Soviet encroachment, the R.A.F. base near Sheffield teems with heightened activity. Yet, for Ruth, Jimmy, and their families, life proceeds as usual, the distant geopolitical turmoil barely piercing their everyday existence. Without warning, on an ordinary spring day, the Cold War turns hot. The Soviet Union launches a brutal attack on the United Kingdom with ICBMs, two of which decimate Sheffield, leaving the city and its inhabitants in smoldering ruins. However, the true horror unfolds in the aftermath, a world drained of order, bereft of clean food, water, and electricity, a world where the production of these basic necessities has become an implausible dream. Surviving the initial devastation, Ruth is thrust into a decade-long struggle for survival in the desolate, radioactive wasteland that was once her home. As she navigates this terrifying new reality, the film Threads weaves a chilling tale of human resilience and the relentless will to endure in a world that has lost all semblance of normalcy.

Threads is a drama movie featuring Karen Meagher.

Threads is currently streaming for free (ad-supported) on Cineverse, Filmzie, Kanopy, Tubi TV and Xumo Play and it's also available on Criterion Channel, Hoopla, MUBI, MUBI Amazon Channel, Midnight Pulp, Night Flight Plus, Shudder and Shudder Amazon Channel.

It is also possible to buy Threads on Amazon Video, Kino Now, Microsoft Store and Vudu.