This particular depiction of the media is not a very kind one from Hollywood. No character is very kind or caring, except for Max, but even he has his moments like the affair with his wife. It shows the broadcasting company as a company that doesn't care what it's showing, just as long as people are watching.
You first notice this when Max gets upset that they want to keep Howard on even though he is no longer giving the news. It shows that these people don't really care if the public gets the news stories, they only care if people are entertained and watching. They are depicted as people who will stop at nothing to get the ratings they seek.
A man begins having a nervous breakdown, one would hope that the news media wouldn't exploit that for higher ratings. But some could argue that news corporations are all about just that, exploiting the news to boost their own viewership. Sure not maybe to the sensationalist attitudes on the movie, but I believe to an extent.
The conglomerations are also depicted as bad people as evidenced by Robert Duvall's character Hackett. He doesn't care about anything or anyone just as long as revenue is up. I wouldn't be surprised if many companies were like that today. Although I doubt they have people killed if their ratings went low, or else Jay Leno would be a dead man.
I don't know if the film is accurate, or if it is trying to be accurate. But it is prophetic. Sure we aren't killing people for low ratings, or keeping mad men on the air, but we do love our rawness and real life (as evidenced by the increasing amount of reality television.) But the film has a lot to say about broadcasting, and it says it eloquently and sharply and it is worth hearing. Accurate or not.
Bibliography for project:
Network. Dir. Sidney Lumet. Perf. WIlliam Holden, Faye Dunaway, Robert Duvall
and Peter Finch. United Artists and MGM, 1976. DVD.
Thursday, April 19, 2012
Network: The Ethics
Ethics, or lack thereof, are a theme that is running rampant throughout this film. From the get go, most of the characters don't appear phased in the slightest by doing things that are unbelievably unethical. Only one person bats an eyelash at any of it, and that is Max. Howard would probably care if he wasn't completely out of his mind. But everyone else has dollar signs for eyes, and ratings on the mind.
The moment we first meet Diana, we know that she doesn't care what they are putting on the screen, only what kind of ratings she gets. She watches the footage of the bank robbery and decides it would make a good t.v. show. Not a t.v show about bank robbers, but a show where these people actually commit crimes and film it. The clip below pretty much sums up all she cares about. (Some profanity)
Once she discovers that Howard Beale as that raw outrage she is talking about, she goes about exploiting him. Hackett is not portrayed as a very caring guy, and he isn't. Once he is convinced of the money that could be made he has no problems getting rid of Max and his protests against using Howard instead of getting him help all for the money. I know I posted his scene on the review entry, but it helps my point here.
That night Howard does exactly what they want, he goes on the air and rants and raves, and ratings sky rocket...
Soon they have a hit show of Howard just blasting off on things, they don't even care what it's about. Just as long as the ratings continue to climb...
Nobody at the Network cares about what this could be doing to Howard...Nobody cares that they are no longer presenting the news because money is being made. Which is never more present in the film than when the president of the corporation takes Howard aside (Howard has been ragging on the conglomeration company that is in charge of the network) and the acting is brilliant. It shows that the people behind these big corporations (at least as depicted in this movie) are only out for money, at whatever cost:
And finally, proving that these people are completely morally bankrupt. When they are faced with losing the ratings and the money they have gathered because of it, they decide to commit a capital crime, and kill Howard Beale. What's great about this scene is you think they are joking, only to find out that they are dead serious and are in fact going to have Howard killed because Jennings won't take him off the air.
It's a long line of unethical decisions and how it changes these people. Max can't handle the cold unfeeling Diana and leaves her, because all she cares about is ratings. I loved that about this movie, that so many of these people forgot that real life was happening, that it wasn't a t.v. show. Only Max seemed to understand that.
The moment we first meet Diana, we know that she doesn't care what they are putting on the screen, only what kind of ratings she gets. She watches the footage of the bank robbery and decides it would make a good t.v. show. Not a t.v show about bank robbers, but a show where these people actually commit crimes and film it. The clip below pretty much sums up all she cares about. (Some profanity)
Once she discovers that Howard Beale as that raw outrage she is talking about, she goes about exploiting him. Hackett is not portrayed as a very caring guy, and he isn't. Once he is convinced of the money that could be made he has no problems getting rid of Max and his protests against using Howard instead of getting him help all for the money. I know I posted his scene on the review entry, but it helps my point here.
That night Howard does exactly what they want, he goes on the air and rants and raves, and ratings sky rocket...
Soon they have a hit show of Howard just blasting off on things, they don't even care what it's about. Just as long as the ratings continue to climb...
Nobody at the Network cares about what this could be doing to Howard...Nobody cares that they are no longer presenting the news because money is being made. Which is never more present in the film than when the president of the corporation takes Howard aside (Howard has been ragging on the conglomeration company that is in charge of the network) and the acting is brilliant. It shows that the people behind these big corporations (at least as depicted in this movie) are only out for money, at whatever cost:
And finally, proving that these people are completely morally bankrupt. When they are faced with losing the ratings and the money they have gathered because of it, they decide to commit a capital crime, and kill Howard Beale. What's great about this scene is you think they are joking, only to find out that they are dead serious and are in fact going to have Howard killed because Jennings won't take him off the air.
It's a long line of unethical decisions and how it changes these people. Max can't handle the cold unfeeling Diana and leaves her, because all she cares about is ratings. I loved that about this movie, that so many of these people forgot that real life was happening, that it wasn't a t.v. show. Only Max seemed to understand that.
Monday, April 16, 2012
Network: Film Review
The late Sidney Lumet was one of the best directors of his time. He had a sharp eye for filming dialogue and making it just as intense as a bank robbery. He was able to take a movie about a group of men sitting in a jurors room arguing about the trial into a compelling and riveting character study with 1957's "12 Angry Men" Which showed the talent he would later bring to 1976's "Network" starring William Holden, Robert Duvall, Faye Dunaway, Peter Finch and Ned Beatty.
The movie opens with shots of Howard Beale as a news anchor giving the news. A narrator informs us that Howard Beale (played by Peter Finch) has just been fired due to poor ratings. After a quick scene out with his best friend and coworker Max Schumacher (William Holden) it cuts to the following scene:
That sets up the whole movie from there. The network, who has been taken over by a large conglomerate decides to keep Howard on the air, despite the fact that he is in the midst of a severe breakdown because the ratings are increasing. So begins the decline of ethics and morals of the station.
Max Schumacher disagrees with the decision and is angry that the station no longer cares about the news. His discontent makes him an enemy of the man in charge from the conglomerate company, Frank Hackett played by the always incredible Robert Duvall. These two dislike each other which leads to some great, tense scenes where we get to see both brilliant actor have at each other like the scene below where Hackett fires Schumacher:
Meanwhile Max has been having an affair with Diana (Faye Dunaway) who works for the network as well, and has been giving the news show in place of Max so she can keep Howard on the air, and keep his sensationalist rants in order to keep viewership up. Faye Dunaway is always great and she plays a woman who cares more about her career and job far more than her personal life and it seeps over into Max who is just looking for love. Until ultimately, the relationship falls apart leading to this incredibly well written and impeccably acted scene where Max leave her:
The movie shows the big corporations as morally bankrupt, who care nothing for actual human beings and only for the dollar sign these people represent. And it all comes out like a firecracker thanks to Sidney Lumet's incredible direction. It won multiple Academy Awards including Best Writing for Paddy Chayefsky, best Actress for Faye Dunaway and Best Actor for Peter Finch. It was also nominated for Best Actor for William Holden (whom I think was more deserving than Finch) Best Supporting Actor Ned Beatty, Best Cinematography, Best Picture and Best Director (all of which it should have won.) It is in the American Film Institutes top 100 movies of all time, and deserves to be higher on the list. It is a truly remarkable film, with a lot to say.
The movie opens with shots of Howard Beale as a news anchor giving the news. A narrator informs us that Howard Beale (played by Peter Finch) has just been fired due to poor ratings. After a quick scene out with his best friend and coworker Max Schumacher (William Holden) it cuts to the following scene:
That sets up the whole movie from there. The network, who has been taken over by a large conglomerate decides to keep Howard on the air, despite the fact that he is in the midst of a severe breakdown because the ratings are increasing. So begins the decline of ethics and morals of the station.
Max Schumacher disagrees with the decision and is angry that the station no longer cares about the news. His discontent makes him an enemy of the man in charge from the conglomerate company, Frank Hackett played by the always incredible Robert Duvall. These two dislike each other which leads to some great, tense scenes where we get to see both brilliant actor have at each other like the scene below where Hackett fires Schumacher:
Meanwhile Max has been having an affair with Diana (Faye Dunaway) who works for the network as well, and has been giving the news show in place of Max so she can keep Howard on the air, and keep his sensationalist rants in order to keep viewership up. Faye Dunaway is always great and she plays a woman who cares more about her career and job far more than her personal life and it seeps over into Max who is just looking for love. Until ultimately, the relationship falls apart leading to this incredibly well written and impeccably acted scene where Max leave her:
The movie shows the big corporations as morally bankrupt, who care nothing for actual human beings and only for the dollar sign these people represent. And it all comes out like a firecracker thanks to Sidney Lumet's incredible direction. It won multiple Academy Awards including Best Writing for Paddy Chayefsky, best Actress for Faye Dunaway and Best Actor for Peter Finch. It was also nominated for Best Actor for William Holden (whom I think was more deserving than Finch) Best Supporting Actor Ned Beatty, Best Cinematography, Best Picture and Best Director (all of which it should have won.) It is in the American Film Institutes top 100 movies of all time, and deserves to be higher on the list. It is a truly remarkable film, with a lot to say.
Introduction
First I'll give a little background about myself. My name is Connor Wright, I am a self proclaimed film snob/enthusiast. I love everything about movies. I have favorites from pretty much every decade all the way back to the silent film era. So anytime I am asked to do a project for school that involves watching movies and critiquing and analyzing them, I get quite excited.
Looking through the lists of movies to choose from It took me a while to choose. I had seen almost every film on the list and enjoyed most of them. But being the Sidney Lumet and William Holden fan that I am, I had to choose "Network". What I plan on doing with this blog is each entry I will focus on a different analytical aspect of the film. The first one I will simply review the film as a critic, then I will follow that up with posts discussing the different aspect of ethics, morals and the over all view this movie has of the news broadcasting world.
I hope that this blog will be both entertaining and insightful and will help whomever may come across it gain a better appreciation for this great movie!
Looking through the lists of movies to choose from It took me a while to choose. I had seen almost every film on the list and enjoyed most of them. But being the Sidney Lumet and William Holden fan that I am, I had to choose "Network". What I plan on doing with this blog is each entry I will focus on a different analytical aspect of the film. The first one I will simply review the film as a critic, then I will follow that up with posts discussing the different aspect of ethics, morals and the over all view this movie has of the news broadcasting world.
I hope that this blog will be both entertaining and insightful and will help whomever may come across it gain a better appreciation for this great movie!
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