“Can you imagine how I feel about it, Dimitri?”
Why it's great
A plea for sympathy turns a global crisis into the speaker's hurt feelings.
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Neutral
Use it yourself
Can you imagine how I feel about taking the blame?
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The President Calls Dimitri, Explained
Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb · 1964
Chapter 8 of 20 · 4'12"
The hotline is supposed to prevent exactly this, so the president spends the first minutes being diplomatic — checking that the line is clear, exchanging pleasantries — before admitting why he called: "I'm just calling up to tell you something terrible has happened." The horror is delivered in the language of a polite apology.
Key moments
Start here, then watch the full scene- 1:31–1:49
❝ Monologue · 5 lines The President's plea
He keeps defending himself before he is accused, and the panic makes the scene funny.
18s - 3:27–3:49
Two Leaders Argue Over Who Is Sorrier
23s
The President Calls Dimitri, explained
What happens
On the hotline, President Muffley reaches Premier Dimitri to tell him that a rogue American commander has ordered planes to attack the Soviet Union. He first checks that the line is clear, then explains that the commander went a little funny in the head. He offers the Soviets the planes' targets and flight plans, and says that if the planes cannot be recalled, America will help shoot them down.
What's really going on
The scene's comedy comes from tone, not plot. The president has to announce the possible end of the world, and he does it the way a nervous man handles an awkward phone call: confirming the connection, trading small talk, asking after the other man's health, apologising for the hour. The catastrophe is buried in courtesy — "I'm just calling up to tell you something terrible has happened," as if the line were a formality. Then the two leaders start competing over who feels worse, each insisting he is more sorry, which turns nuclear annihilation into a matter of wounded politeness. Under the jokes sits the film's real point: the machinery meant to prevent this is staffed by fallible, slightly absurd men, and the hotline is only as sane as the people speaking into it.
Key lines & what they mean
- “Can you imagine how I feel about it, Dimitri?”
- Muffley appeals for sympathy: he wants Dimitri to grasp how awful it is to be the one making this call.
- “I'm just calling up to tell you something terrible has happened.”
- The plain statement of disaster, softened by the phrase 'calling up' — as if this were an ordinary courtesy call.
- “Listen, if it wasn't friendly, you probably wouldn't have even got it.”
- His reassurance that the call is friendly: if it were a trick, the line would not have been connected at all.
- “They will not reach their targets for at least another hour.”
- The one piece of hard information: there is a little time before impact, and it becomes the deadline for everything.
- “I'd say that-- well, We're just gonna have to help you destroy them, Dimitri.”
- The grim offer: if the planes cannot be recalled, the Americans will help the Soviets shoot down their own aircraft.
- “Don't say that you're more sorry than I am, Because I'm capable of being just as sorry as you are.”
- The argument that ends the call: each leader insists he is at least as sorry as the other, turning guilt into a contest.
Theme
- Satire — The end of the world is announced like an awkward phone call, complete with small talk and apologies.
- Absurdity — Two leaders argue over who is sorrier while nuclear destruction is already under way.
What this chapter teaches
Teaching points
Review right after watchingMy level4/6
A1–C2 is the CEFR scale. Cards above the level you pick fade, and playback will not auto-pause on them.
Language points
Click a card to jump to its moment in the videoGolden lines
A great line in its own right — why and how to use it“I'm just calling up to tell you something terrible has happened.”
Why it's great
The mild 'just' makes the bad news land even harder.
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Neutral
Use it yourself
I'm just calling to tell you your flight was cancelled.
“Listen, if it wasn't friendly, you probably wouldn't have even got it.”
Why it's great
A neat conditional argues that a hostile call would never have been put through.
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Informal
Use it yourself
If it wasn't real, you wouldn't have even got the invite.
“They will not reach their targets for at least another hour.”
Why it's great
A calm timetable becomes the only thing standing between the world and disaster.
Register
Formal
Use it yourself
The bus will not leave for at least another ten minutes.
“I'd say that-- well, We're just gonna have to help you destroy them, Dimitri.”
Why it's great
An unspeakable offer is delivered as a reluctant little favour.
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Informal
Use it yourself
We're just gonna have to start over from scratch.
“Don't say that you're more sorry than I am, Because I'm capable of being just as sorry as you are.”
Why it's great
Two leaders compete over who is sorrier, turning catastrophe into a comedy of manners.
Register
Neutral
Use it yourself
I'm capable of being just as tired as you are.
Monologue
One character carrying the scene — shadow the whole passage❝ The President's plea
To attack your country-- Well, let me finish, Dimitri. Let me finish, Dimitri. Well, listen, how do you think I feel about it? Can you imagine how I feel about it, Dimitri? Why do you think I'm calling you?
He keeps defending himself before he is accused, and the panic makes the scene funny.
Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb: your progress
Chapter 8 of 20 · about 33 min to go
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Up next · 09precious bodily fluidsThe scene: Ripper Explains the Fluoridation PlotTakeaways
What you walk away with- Small talk about the line buys time before the confession.
- Two leaders can turn a crisis into an apology contest.
- Offering help to bomb your own planes is the darkest joke here.
- The word just makes terrible news sound casual.
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Questions, then the linesWhy does the president call Dimitri?
To warn the Soviets directly. A rogue American commander has launched planes at the USSR, and the president wants to explain the mistake and coordinate a response before it is too late.
What does the president offer the Soviets?
He offers a full rundown of the planes' targets, flight plans and defensive systems, and says the US will help destroy the planes if they cannot be recalled.
What does 'come through' mean in the call?
It means a voice or signal is received clearly. The president keeps asking whether he is coming through fine, treating the connection itself as the first problem to solve.
Why do the two leaders argue about being sorry?
It is a joke about politeness. Each insists he is more sorry than the other, until nuclear catastrophe becomes a matter of manners and wounded pride.
Why does the president keep insisting the call is friendly?
He is trying to keep Dimitri calm and listening. A surprise attack could look like a trick, so he stresses that a hostile call would not even have been put through: "if it wasn't friendly, you probably wouldn't have even got it."