Network (2001, DVD)

This is my entry into Epinions member dbcint's* The Quote That Makes The Movie W/O. The objective is to write a review of film in which there is a memorable quote that basically sums up the contents of the film. I chose for my entry, one of the most memorable movie quotes of all time, which I think continues to be relevant even today.

When the movie Network was released in 1976, the Vietnam War had just ended, oil prices were rising, and there was a general feeling of disillusionment among the American population. I can see numerous parallels between that time period, and the one in which we find ourselves today. In light of the upcoming presidential election, there are many Americans who could use the quote referred to in this film as a rallying cry, for many of the same reasons that it was so popular and relevant in 1976.

While written as a serious drama, Network is actually an acerbic satire of the influence of television and huge corporations in the everyday lives of the American public. The film won four Academy Awards for best Screenplay by Paddy Chayefsky, (The Hospital/Paint Your Wagon) Best Actor for Peter Finch, (Sunday, Bloody Sunday/Elephant Walk) which he received posthumously, Best Actress for Faye Dunaway, (Chinatown/Bonnie & Clyde) and Best Supporting Actress for Beatrice Straight, (Poltergeist/The Borrowers) for the briefest Academy Award winning performance in history, prior to Judi Dench's role in Shakespeare In Love.

The plot is merely a vehicle for the film's ultra cynical content. Aging, 25 year veteran News Anchor Howard Beale (Peter Finch) of UBS Network, is being replaced due to poor ratings. This is just one in a series of setbacks for the newscaster, who has undergone a recent divorce and is struggling with alcoholism. Beale announces on his nightly newscast that he intends to commit suicide on the air during his final appearance. Network Executive Frank Hackett (Robert Duvall) calls for his immediate dismissal, until Beale's announcement creates a huge increase in ratings. Opportunistic Programming Executive Diana Christensen (Faye Dunnaway) sees Beale's erratic behavior as a chance to grab a large piece of market share, and as the opportunity to usher in some of her envelope pushing ideas for "reality tv" programming.

Instead of committing suicide, Beale delivers the following paraphrased rambling monologue:

"I don't have to tell you things are bad... It's a depression. Everybody's out of work or scared of losing their job. The dollar buys a nickel's worth. Banks are going bust. Shopkeepers keep a gun under the counter. Punks are running wild in the streets and there's no one anywhere who seems to know what to do with us...We sit in a house and slowly the world we're living in is getting smaller and all we say is, "Please don't leave us alone in our living rooms. Let me have my toaster, and TV, and my steel belted radials and I won't say anything." Well I'm not going to leave you alone. I want you to get mad. All I know is first you've got to get mad...So, I want you to get up right now and go to the window, open it, and stick your head out, and yell, "I'm mad as hell, and I'm not going to take this anymore!" Then will figure out what to do about about the depression, and the inflation and the oil crisis. But first, get up out of your chairs, open the window, stick your head out and yell. "I'm mad as hell and I'm not going to take this anymore!"

Beale's message strikes a chord with the audience, and he begins to hosts the most popular show on television, and is nicknamed the "Mad Prophet Of The Airwaves." Diana Christensen is also on the rise with her meteoric success. Network Executive Max Schumacher, (William Holden) never fully buys into his close friend, Beale's, transformation to a ranting sideshow freak. However, he is strangely attracted to Diana, and begins an affair with her, abandoning his wife (Beatrice Straight) and family.

In the final bizarre piece of the puzzle, Network Owner Arthur Jensen (Ned Beatty) convinces Beale to change his message to an outcry against corporate exploitation of the masses. When the ratings begin to plummet, the lives of all of the major players in the network are left in state of total disarray.

Director Sidney Lumet (Q & A/Dog Day Afternoon) manages to craft a compelling film out of little more than sharp dialog and sound bites on the strength a powerful script by Paddy Chayefsky and tour de force performances by the entire cast. The satire in this film is obviously wicked. The character of Howard Beale is the symbolic sacrificial lamb on the altar of the dehumanizing effect of the corporate world of network television, and the audience is portrayed as brainwashed sheep, with little or no ability to think for themselves.

While absurdly exaggerated, there is just enough of a kernel of truth in this film, to make it quite sobering and prophetic. It raises the question of whether the public is truly able to discern the difference between reality, and the warped worldview presented on television. After all, aren't we seeing the culmination of the "reality tv," concept today, with the tremendous popularity of a plethora of these escapist shows appearing on television over the past couple of years?

The strength of the film is seen not only in the brilliant script, but in the powerhouse performances by the wonderful cast. Peter Finch is riveting in his last, and most famous, major film role. Likewise, Faye Dunaway delivers a stunning performance as the ambitious, icey, rating goddess Diana Christiensen. William Holden, Ned Beatty, Beatrice Straight, and Robert Duval all add superb supporting performances as well.

The film is most memorable, however, for the quote that still strikes a chord in Americans, as it did over 25 years ago. "I'm mad as hell, and I'm not going to take this anymore."


*Please see dbcint's profile page for details about this W/O.