Review of Network (1976) by Jesse D — 21 Jan 2012

As great as Rocky was...this was the Best Picture of 1976. A brilliant cast, excellent screenplay by Paddy Chayevsky, and the beautiful direction of the late Sidney Lumet. Network was a film that was in a lot of ways ahead of it's time. It spoke about the lengths to which networks will go for ratings, what happens when corporations control the networks, and the sensationalism to which the news has become. The story is weaved around the fictional Union Broadcasting Systems (UBS), now controlled by a conglomerate CCA. UBS is doing consistently poor in every category against the other major networks. It's News Division is headed by veteran television executive, Max Shumacher (William Holden), the head of network programing, Diana Christensen (Faye Dunaway in her Oscar winning performance) lives and breaths in terms of marketing and numbers and really has no emotional or moral compass to draw from. There is also CCA's "hatchet man" for UBS, Frank Hackett (Robert Duvall) who only looks at how UBS will make money for CCA and cares about really nothing else. Then, there is the man who is at the center of this whole story, UBS Evening News Anchor and Max Shumacher's best friend, Howard Beale (played by Peter Finch in his legendary Oscar winning performance), who is a widower, sinking in the ratings,on the verge of complete breakdown, and has just been fired by UBS for his poor ratings...what happens next to these cast of characters made Paddy Chayevsky's screenplay come alive in an amazing way and it is why I feel that it was the Best Film of 1976. It is a must watch for those who haven't seen it, which is why I won't give away spoilers.

If you are "as mad as hell and not going to take this anymore!", Prepare yourself for Howard Beale and for Network! 5/5 stars.