Slick, 'adult', self-congratulatory, and almost entirely hollow.
Network (1976)
Tomatometer
How does the Tomatometer work ![]()
Reviews Counted:41
Fresh:37
Rotten:4
Average Rating:8.1/10
Runtime: 4 hrs 35 mins
Genre: Television
Synopsis: With stunning prescience, Sidney Lumet's searing satire of television and the contemporary moment chronicles media corruption and the way that the public buys into the myths the media creates. The... With stunning prescience, Sidney Lumet's searing satire of television and the contemporary moment chronicles media corruption and the way that the public buys into the myths the media creates. The moral and spiritual turpitude delivered by the debilitating forces of television are rendered in sharp relief against a backdrop of crumbling humanity in what is regarded as one of the great satires in Hollywood history. With a visceral script from Paddy Chayefsky, NETWORK follows the doomed path of aging newsman Howard Beale (Peter Finch), who, upon learning that he is to be fired after decades as a news anchor, announces to millions of viewers that he will publicly commit suicide during his last broadcast. When the ratings consequently shoot up, hungry executive-in-training Diana Christensen (Faye Dunaway) seizes the moment to exploit Beale's Messianic nervous breakdown, turning his rage into the vehicle for the network's first Number One show and a nationwide craze. Who could have predicted that this 1976 film might someday influence an even more contagious trend in television broadcasting: the reality show? [More]
Starring: Peter Finch, Faye Dunaway, William Holden, Robert Duvall
Starring: Peter Finch, Faye Dunaway, William Holden, Robert Duvall, Wesley Addy, Ned Beatty, Beatrice Straight, Arthur Burghardt, Bill Burrows, Jordan Charney, Kathy Cronkite, Ed Crowley, Jerome Dempsey, Conchata Ferrell, Gene Gross, Stanley Grover, Cindy Grover, Darryl Hickman, Mitchell Jason, Paul Jenkins, Ken Kercheval, Kenneth Kimmins, Lynn Klugman, Carolyn Krigbaum, Zane Lasky, Michael Lombard, Pirie MacDonald, Russ Petranto, Bernie Pollack, Roy Poole, William Prince, Sasha Von Sherler, Lane Smith, Ted Sorel, Fred Stuthman, Cameron Thomas, Marlene Warfield, Lydia Wilson, Lee Richardson, Michael Lipton
Director: Sidney Lumet
Director: Sidney Lumet
Screenwriter: Paddy Chayefsky
Producer: Howard Gottfried
Composer: Elliot Lawrence
Reviews for Network
Finch's spouting is impressive, but we prefer Holden's sardonic edge, even if his big speeches seem the most predictably written.
Chayefsky was apparently serious about much of this shrill, self-important 1976 satire about television, interlaced with bile about radicals and pushy career women, and so were some critics at the time.
For some reason, Paddy Chayefsky's Oscar-winning satire was perceived as a drama when the movie came out in 1976. Much ahead of its time, the film was a cautionary tale of the news media as infotainment (emphasis on the secon part of the concept).
So truthful, so prescient, it's painful. Paddy Chayevsky delivers one of the best screenplays ever written.
Much of Chayefsky's script seems to have been written with megaphone in hand, which is close to how director Sidney Lumet airs it out. Yet in retrospect, maybe the ravings of Finch as a deranged anchorman aren't so far from surreal madness of Jerry Spring
One would assume that a 1976 film about network television would feel dated today, but director Sidney Lumet and screenwriter Paddy Chayefsky had such a fine concept that Network seems downright contemporary.
Rare is the social satire that rings as true as Network does, and the film is even more topical today than it was thirty years ago.
If Network had the ring of truth to it in 1976, you can be sure it's even truer today.
A well-crafted piece of celluloid that holds up quite nicely in the feeding-frenzy mentality that defines modern media.
One of the greatest in a great year for movies. My favorite William Holden performance.
Latest News for Network
June 22, 2007:
AFI Announces Top 100 Movies of All Time ... Again
Ten years ago the AFI gave us a list of the Top 100 American Films Ever Made -- and when that was done they churned out 15 other lists every few years. And then last night they... More...
March 09, 2006:
Trailer Bulletin: Find Me Guilty
Wondering what Vin Diesel's been up to lately? Well, he's been off making a fact-based courtroom flick with ... legendary director Sidney Lumet, that's who. Entitled "Find... More...
More DVDs
| Tomatometer Percentage | Movie |
|---|---|
| 15% 15% | The Ugly Truth |
| 98% 98% | Up |
| 36% 36% | G.I. Joe: The Rise of … |
| 52% 52% | The Taking of Pelham 1… |
| 45% 45% | Ice Age: Dawn of the D… |
| Tomatometer Percentage | Movie |
|---|---|
| 36% 36% | Angels & Demons |
| 68% 68% | Funny People |
| 25% 25% | Four Christmases |
| 45% 45% | Shorts |
What’s Hot On RT
Other News
Sponsored Links
Fresh Links
Featured

Subscribe to RT's YouTube channel and don't miss a second of our cracking video content.

Follow Rotten Tomatoes and join us as we tweet about the week's releases.



Top Critic

