Review of Network (1976) by Kenny S — 10 Jul 2009
What does it mean when the insane news anchor is the man with the most sense in the room?
Everyone remembering the "mad as hell" monologue may be either the greatest homage or the greatest disservice to the movie, where madman Howard Beale is more of a greek chorus to the actions of Faye Dunaway (can we have more sex symbols like her, please?) William Holden, and the boardroom execs. While some of the satire goes over the top, even in those moments you see glints of prescience. Lumet saw Clear Channel running the media and youtube viral vids and twitter feeds getting more airplay than an Iranian Political Analyst or a health care policy specialist. He foresaw TV where people shouted what you wanted to hear back at you. But he also saw the death of nation states and the supercedence of corporations that know no political boundaries. Globalization supporters like to think of that dirty little secret as something inherently new to Generation X and beyond, but Lumet, in what really is an awakening and disheartening movie, at least offers us millennials this small comfort - we didn't start the fire.
This review of Network (1976) was written by Kenny S on 10 Jul 2009.
Network has generally received very positive reviews.
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