1984 (Nineteen Eighty-Four) (1984)

Featured Audience Ratings

• Unknown H

  
  There are just some stories that are better left on paper. For all my love of Orwell (and believe me it runs deep) there was something sordid about watching some of my most beloved and loathed characters play out on the screen, however well the actors delivered on their end of the… More
  There are just some stories that are better left on paper. For all my love of Orwell (and believe me it runs deep) there was something sordid about watching some of my most beloved and loathed characters play out on the screen, however well the actors delivered on their end of the bargain. When it comes to something so utterly seperate from reality as 1984 is, I feel that it is better left in the minds of those who dare to imagine it rather than to have someone elses view imagined for you and played out on the screen. This will always be one of those "you need to read the book" kinda deals.

• Melvin W

  
  O'Brien: Power is tearing human minds apart and putting them back together in new shapes of your own choosing.  "Big Brother is watching" 1984 may be a great book, but as far as this movie goes; I didn't care for it at all. The only thing I liked about the movie… More
  O'Brien: Power is tearing human minds apart and putting them back together in new shapes of your own choosing.  "Big Brother is watching" 1984 may be a great book, but as far as this movie goes; I didn't care for it at all. The only thing I liked about the movie was the always great Roger Deakins and his cinematography. Other than that I disliked everything about this movie. The interesting premise is ruined by scene after scene of dullness. It becomes so incredibly tiresome watching dull performances and listening to dull dialogue.  This is probably just a case of a book not translating well to screen. This story is better when read. On the screen, it comes off as uninteresting and boring, when in reality the concept could not be more interesting. I kind of had a feeling I wasn't going to like this movie after the first 20 minutes. The one thing the director did succeed in was making a bleak movie. Everything about it is bleak, even the filmmaking.  This is one of those movies that I just don't want to even think about watching again. It was just so hard to sit through. I can watch a movie that is slow as long as it is interesting. I can't watch a slow, boring, dull film that is a subpar recreation of a story I can get somewhere else. Watch it if you must, but don't say I didn't tell you so.

• Megan S

  
  It really didn't catch my attention at all. I remember liking the book a lot in high school but I just couldn't get into this movie.

• Matheus C

  
  Competent but straightforward adaptation of one of my favourite novels. Makes me wonder what a more visionary director like Alan Parker or Terry Gilliam could have done with the material.

• AJ V

  
  A pretty good adaptation of Orwell's novel, but it's really boring for the most part, unfortunately. Still, it was really cool to see the story brought to life anyway.

• El Hombre I

  
  While no movie can replace Orwell's words, and his novel should be read first, director Michael Radford's version is worth your time. The faithful attempt at bringing George Orwell's 1984 to the big screen captures the grim world of a fascist government. Some arguments… More
  While no movie can replace Orwell's words, and his novel should be read first, director Michael Radford's version is worth your time. The faithful attempt at bringing George Orwell's 1984 to the big screen captures the grim world of a fascist government. Some arguments will say the film is dated. I feel it's timeless. Nothing about the film gives away the date that it was made. Only the fact I know who John Hurt and Richard Burton are gives a hint to time period. If this film had been released today, it would be seen as a direct attack on the Bush Administration. It's almost difficult to think the film was about communism. 1984 is a horror movie. True horror. The horror is the monster hidden in every form of government which not only wants to control over every action, but your every thought. Some governments have this horror under control more than others, but none are without it. This is George Orwell's warning. 1984 is one of the most depressing films I've ever seen. It's not for those who demand a good time or a happy ending. Richard Burton is as brutal and dry as they come and John Hurt in the lead role as Winston broke my heart. All this through the lens of cinematographer Roger Deakins. <a href="http://s273.photobucket.com/albums/jj203/goji9000/?action=view¤t=richard_burton_as_obrien.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i273.photobucket.com/albums/jj203/goji9000/richard_burton_as_obrien.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>

• Dan S

  
  A cold, harsh, unforgiving adaption of a classic novel. Hurt gives an internally scarred performance, a man torn between being a loyal citizen to his fascist nation, or pursuing a love interest that is strictly forbidden. It's not a pretty film to look at, but that's the… More
  A cold, harsh, unforgiving adaption of a classic novel. Hurt gives an internally scarred performance, a man torn between being a loyal citizen to his fascist nation, or pursuing a love interest that is strictly forbidden. It's not a pretty film to look at, but that's the point of the story. If you get depressed easily, don't watch this movie, but if you like governmental thrillers in which the lead character actually is more human that superhero, you should like this.

• Michael G

  
  Concerning 1984, I hope the book is better than the movie. I will say for the movie that John Hurt and Richard Burton (in his last role) were amazing. Roger Deakins' cinematography was also top-notch to go along with a great soundtrack. I remember very little of the book (my last… More
  Concerning 1984, I hope the book is better than the movie. I will say for the movie that John Hurt and Richard Burton (in his last role) were amazing. Roger Deakins' cinematography was also top-notch to go along with a great soundtrack. I remember very little of the book (my last and only attempt to make it through was junior year of high school) but I remember that it took the time to explain things the movie didn't bother with. I get the impression that you'd get the most out of the movie if you've read the book. I was kind of sick when I watched 1984 so I don't know if I was just generally out of it when I say the movie jumped around or if its just a crappy adaptation of the script. Either way its not a wasted watch...

• Cassandra M

  
  From the opening shot of "Nineteen Eighty Four" the viewer is plunged right into the hellhole of Oceania and the ultimate totalitarian nightmare. Whilst the year 1984 may be long past us, the essential themes of George Orwell's best known work still remain as timely and… More
  From the opening shot of "Nineteen Eighty Four" the viewer is plunged right into the hellhole of Oceania and the ultimate totalitarian nightmare. Whilst the year 1984 may be long past us, the essential themes of George Orwell's best known work still remain as timely and as relevant as ever. Winston Smith (John Hurt) is a drone worker in the Bureau of Information, and his job is to edit the news in accordance with the needs of the governing Party (which is in continual, seemingly endless war with Eurasia and other opposing states). He must also refer to the dictionary of Newsspeak, which is the government's language for the distribution of information. He lives in a world where there is no escape from the authority of the government who regiment the every thought and deed of their subjects. The Party is steadily working on a way to outlaw the concept of the family and the idea of conception. This is done to eradicate Thoughtcrime and guarantee the worker's total devotion to the Party and its leader, Big Brother. Winston abides by this (recording his increasingly ambiguous thoughts about society in a hidden, handwritten diary) until he encounters Julia (Suzanna Hamilton), a strange young women with rebellious ideas, to whom he develops a powerful attraction. But their passionate, forbidden relationship cannot escape the all-seeing eyes of Big Brother..... Screenwriter Jonathan Gems has a done a terrific job with the script. He successfully translates Orwell's ideas to the screen with great clarity. Micheal Radford directs with subtlety around the greasy sets and crumbling locations (the picture was filmed in and around the very area in which Orwell set his novel). The performances from the chief principals are very strong. John Hurt is excellent as Winston, bringing a subtle and considerate approach to the character. Particularly disturbing is his final scenes, as he becomes gaunt and disfigured through government torture. Suzanna Hamilton is gentle and quirky as Julia and "Rab C Nesbitt" actor Gregor Fisher appears as Winston's ill-fated friend, Parsons. Veteran actor Richard Burton lends a cold charisma to government enforcer O'Brien and he too excels in the film's final moments, as he coolly and sadistically tortures Winston, subjecting him to severe physical pain to subdue him, casually pulling a tooth out of his rotting mouth, then exposing him to the horrors of Room 101, all the while exhorting obedience to the Party and love to Big Brother. The strong relevance of the concepts of "Nineteen Eighty Four" should not be underestimated. Whilst the term "Big Brother" is now synonymous with the ridiculous "reality" TV shows of the same name, others like the Two Minutes Hate (in which the workers are coerced, through a two-minute broadcast, into hating the enemies of the state); the idea of a government waging a perpetual war to advocate "peace" (especially relevant in the aftermath of September 11) as well as the editing of news and the abuse of language in order to suit the needs of government and disguise its true agendas are ideas that are chillingly present in today's society. All of this is powerful and thought-provoking stuff, and helps to make "Nineteen Eighty Four" an accurate and powerful rendering of a still very timely piece of work.

• Pierluigi P

  
  Surprisingly good, and sadly underrated, take on George Orwell's seminal novel. great cinematography and art design. superbly played by John Hurt and Richard Burton, in his last screen role.

• Curtis L

  
  Pretty lame. I guess it's a classic, and most other things like it came from the book, but even the book is boring. Watch brazil instead.

• Tsubaki S

  
  Faithfull to the source material indeed, and well acted, but i still feel that still feels short on the heavily paranoic atmosphere that the novel has. Still, not a bad attempt.

• Tom E

  
  a VERY slow dull movie

• Danny R

  
  "Who controls the past controls the future, who controls the present controls the past; from the film's opening caption. A dark and uncompromising vision of the ultimate totalitarian nightmare, this stunning film by director Michael Radford based on George Orwell's… More
  "Who controls the past controls the future, who controls the present controls the past; from the film's opening caption. A dark and uncompromising vision of the ultimate totalitarian nightmare, this stunning film by director Michael Radford based on George Orwell's classic novel is sometimes very hard to watch. It concerns a doomed rebel Winston Smith played by John Hurt in an extraordinary performance who illegally falls in love and dare commits the crime of independent thought, even with Big Brother watching all the time, he is soon discovered and interrogated then tortured by O'Brien chillingly played by the late Richard Burton in his final screen appearance; he delivers a menacing and unforgettable performance as a merciless and sadistic official of the ruling party from the Ministry of Truth determined to control his thoughts and crush his spirt, even if it means feeding Smith's face to hungry rats! Superlative supporting performances by Suzanna Hamilton, George Fisher, Cyril Cusack, Anthony Benson and Andrew Wilde. Appropriately grim and bleak, a powerfully disturbing film. Highly Recommended.

• Andrew F

  
  This was a pretty good adaptation of the book. I just didn't like how the city was dirty everywhere... that's not how I pictured it. John Hurt's "crying" in the Ministry of Love was also quite annoying.

• Simeon D

  
  Not as genius as the book, but still dark and powerful, with a great performance from John Hurt. 89/100

• John M

  
  The photography is brilliant, with dirty industrial design and destroyed and grey landscapes. The minimal electronic sound track add more dark atmosphere to the hostile surroundings and the disturbing plot. The best about this movie are the actors, especially John Hurt as tortured… More
  The photography is brilliant, with dirty industrial design and destroyed and grey landscapes. The minimal electronic sound track add more dark atmosphere to the hostile surroundings and the disturbing plot. The best about this movie are the actors, especially John Hurt as tortured individualist Winston Smith and Richard Burton in his very last role as an official, explaining the principles of the totalitarian system to Hurt. Watch this touching, fascinating and very atmospheric science fiction movie

• Stefan P

  
  I had to see this adaptation immediately after reading Orwell's classic masterpiece. The environments was surprisingly similar to the ones I imagined when reading the book. It was thrilling to see the book come alive, and wonder what the different characters would look like, and… More
  I had to see this adaptation immediately after reading Orwell's classic masterpiece. The environments was surprisingly similar to the ones I imagined when reading the book. It was thrilling to see the book come alive, and wonder what the different characters would look like, and so on. But even though this is a great film, it can't take the book to higher levels.

• shane h

  
  Well 1984 is already beginning to happen in the US with the Patriot Act and Homeland Security. We are being watched and monitored all the time, even more than most people think. The movie follows two people who fall in love and have to sneak away to be together because fornication is… More
  Well 1984 is already beginning to happen in the US with the Patriot Act and Homeland Security. We are being watched and monitored all the time, even more than most people think. The movie follows two people who fall in love and have to sneak away to be together because fornication is forbidden. Society is controlled by government in every way, basic rights and even things like coffee and sugar have been taken away. The government has t.v.'s in every home and plays video of lies basically to brainwash you. The movie is really well done for coming out in 1984. Radford throws in random images and strange camera angles to make his scenes even more surreal. Like most movies I start watching at 4 in the morning I fell asleep so I don't know how it ended but I really liked what I did see.

• Doctor S

  
  A worthy representation of the book: bleak, oppressing, depressing. Of course, you've gotta WANT to see that sort of thing! Memorable final role for Richard Burton.

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