1984 john hurt movie#

The film opens with Smith rewriting history: His task is to change obsolete government documents so that they reflect current reality.

1984 john hurt movie#

There is not a single prop in this movie that you couldn't buy in a junkyard, and yet the visual result is uncanny: Orwell's hero, Winston Smith, lives in a world of grim and crushing inhumanity, of bombed factories, bug-infested bedrooms, and citizens desperate for the most simple pleasures. The movie's 1984 is like a year arrived at through a time warp, an alternative reality that looks constructed out of old radio tubes and smashed office furniture.

And while they are at it, a quality version of John GillingвЂ™s THE GAMMA PEOPLE would also be appreciated so that the original double feature can be duplicated at home or online.Michael Radford's brilliant film of Orwell's vision does a good job of finding that line between the 'future' world of 1984 and the grim postwar world in which Orwell wrote. ending could be a bonus feature) and someone like Eureka or Kino or Criterion will give us the restored version so that it can be properly evaluated. Although Sony/Columbia no longer own the rights, hopefully the original film materials still exist with the U.S.

So I sit waiting for the day that a quality release of the 1956 movie will appear. They should have copied the earlier BBC version where Andre MorellвЂ™s explanation of what the rat mask can do creates a far more disturbing image that sticks with you more than anything that could have been shown. There were certainly more restrictions placed on director Michael Anderson in 1956 than Michael Radford who had carte blanche in 1984 but on the whole I prefer the вЂњless is moreвЂќ approach The one notable exception is in the Room 101 scene which is virtually non-existent. Michael RedgraveвЂ™s performance is more theatrical and less realistic than BurtonвЂ™s but he conveys more of the ideological fanaticism inherent in OrwellвЂ™s world view of post-Atomic life. People like to criticize Edmond OвЂ™Brien for being too вЂњchunkyвЂќ as Winston especially compared to the much leaner John Hurt but OвЂ™Brien looks more like your average worker that spends most of his time sitting in front of a screen and when itвЂ™s time for Room 101 he is more than capable of delivering the goods. While the newer movie is certainly more realistic in both visuals and performances, to me it lacks the nightmarish quality produced by the cramped sets and the black & white photography of the first film (which would be even more impressive in a restored version). Both have their strengths and weaknesses. Most of the reviewers here and on imdb compare the 1956 version unfavorably to the later 1984 version with John Hurt & Richard Burton but itвЂ™s another apples to oranges comparison.

The other reason is that Columbia allowed the copyright to lapse and 1984 and its companion release, THE GAMMA PEOPLE, disappeared for many years. They had the film withdrawn from circulation shortly after it opened in the U.K although the USA version has the original book ending. Part of this is due to the estate of George Orwell who hated the altered ending SPOILER ALERT wherein Winston & Julia overcome their brainwashing and are killed rather than becoming mindless followers of Big Brother. That should not be the case with the 1956 film but unfortunately, for the present, all we have are public domain copies with some better than others but none of them great. However that version was taken from a live BBC broadcast so the quality is understandable. It is now available on DVD and on You Tube although the quality is certainly not up to todayвЂ™s standards. Although billed as вЂњThe Original 1984вЂќ, that distinction belongs to the 1954 BBC-TV version that starred Peter Cushing and Andre Morell and was adapted by Nigel Kneale of QUATERMASS fame.