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Actors: William Holden, Peter Finch, Faye Dunaway, Robert Duvall
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| Review Summary and Plot Commentary about Network |
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Fourth ranked TV network UBS corporation is experiencing financial difficulties and a shakeup. Aging veteran news executive Max Schumacher (Holden) fires Howard Beale (Finch), an alcoholic news anchor whose ratings have plummeted. With two weeks' notice, Beale goes on the air and announces he will commit suicide when his show ends. The network is flooded with calls, and the next day Beale says he won't kill himself, but he fires off a crazy rant and instructs viewers to go to the window and yell "I'm mad as hell, and I'm not going to take it anymore!" Suddenly his ratings soar, and a young ambitious exec named Diana Christensen (Dunaway) forces Max to rehire Beale, as well as program other off-the-wall entertainment. Fascinated by carnivorous Diana, Max has a cold affair with her while Beale goes more and more off the charts, with network approval until he starts to reveal startling facts about his bosses, such as their plans to sell the company to the Saudis. When Paddy Chayevsky's script was shot by veteran director Sidney Lumet in 1976, it seemed like a savage satire, but now it just seems prophetic. "Network" received 10 Oscar nominations and won 4: Best Actor for Finch (posthumously), Best Actress for Dunaway, Best Supporting Actress for Beatrice Straight as Max's angry, betrayed wife, and Best Screenplay. A bit dated in some ways, but it still packs a wallop.
--David Loftus, Resident Scholar
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A news anchor is fired from his job, and threatens to commit suicide on the air. His angry rants cause a surge in ratings, and he soon becomes the "mad prophet of the airwaves".
--David Macdonald, Resident Scholar
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| Analysis of Network |
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Ratings are on a 1-10 scale (Low to High)
Plot
Time/era of movie:
- 1960's-1970's
Inner struggle or disability
Yes
Struggle with
- midlife crisis
Job/Profession/Poverty Story?
Yes
Job:
- journalist
Main Character
Identity:
- Male
Profession/status:
- journalist
Age:
- 40's-50's
Eccentric:
Yes
- eccentric
- wild
Hair color?
- white
Hair type
- (man) short/standard curly
Body type
- (man) average
- (man) fat
Events of movie makes character more...
- aggressive
- irritated
Ethnicity/Nationality
- White (American)
How sensitive is this character?
- hard edged
Sense of humor?
- Cynical sense of humor
Intelligence
- Average intelligence
- Smarter than most other characters
Physique
- average physique
- druggie/wino disease
Secondary Main Character
Identity:
- Male
Hair color
- white/grey
Hair style
- (man) short/standard straight
Body type
- (man) average build
How much in movie?
- 80%
Ethnicity/Nationality
- White (American)
Main Adversary
Identity:
- Female
Age:
- 20's-30's
Profession/status:
- producer/director
Eccentric:
Yes
- obsessed
How much of work is main antagonist actually present in:
- 60%
Hair color
- blonde
Hair type
- (woman) medium/shoulderlgn straight
- (woman) medium/shoulderlgn wavey
Body type
- (woman) average
Ethnicity/Nationality
- White (American)
How sensitive is this character?
- hard edged
Sense of humor
- Mostly serious with occasional humor
Intelligence
- Smarter than most other characters
- Very much smarter than other characters
Physique
- average physique
Setting
United States
Yes
The US:
- Northeast
City?
Yes
City:
- New York
- rude people
Style
Accounts of torture and death?
- generic/vague references to death/punishment
Movie makes you feel...
- depressed/sad
- all mixed up
Sex/nudity in movie?
Yes
What kind of sex:
- kissing
- seeing breasts
- sex under blankets
Any profanity?
- A lot of foul language
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Resident Scholar Profiles
TOP SCHOLAR:
 David Loftus
SCHOLARS:
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Note: the views expressed here are only those of the reviewer(s). | |
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