Mission Posted February 15, 2005 Share Posted February 15, 2005 I've never read the book (although I've heard so much about it) and I hadn't seen the film either but after a quick scan of the Channel 4 website on Sunday, I noticed it was on so I taped it. I watched it last night and to be perfectly honest, although it was a decent enough film I wasn't that impressed with it. I don't get the ending either, I thought that once he'd been arrested by the thought police that he'd end up dead but the ending suggests otherwise (or is that the point, he is either dead or the whole thing was some figment of his imagination)? Me confused again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
monkey_magic Posted February 15, 2005 Share Posted February 15, 2005 He ends up brainwashed - so scared of room 101 that he thinks whatever big brother wants him to think. The film's nothing like as good as the book, although the book is pretty depressing - (not the best choice if you're on a nice relaxing holiday). Spot on though, with it's imaginary enemies that the countries are at war with because big brother tells them so. Just like the war against terror, and the cold war. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mission Posted February 15, 2005 Author Share Posted February 15, 2005 Ahh right, so it's basically all about manipulating people’s minds then? I guess I should have read the book before watching the film but then again, maybe reading the book will answer my questions. I might have a look around on Amazon at some point tonight. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
When Skies Are Grey Posted February 15, 2005 Share Posted February 15, 2005 He ends up brainwashed - so scared of room 101 that he thinks whatever big brother wants him to think. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Or thats what they want you to think....god now I've confused myself! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ant Posted February 15, 2005 Share Posted February 15, 2005 I didn't think the film was better than the book either, it lacked the detail. To me you needed to have read the book before watching the film. I'm sure I remember reading that the BBC made their own film or drama of 1984 and that it had a happy ending . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slinkydevil Posted February 16, 2005 Share Posted February 16, 2005 Agreed, film not as good as the book. Inspired story for 1949 though. Mission - full text of 1984 book is available online here: http://orwell.ru/library/novels/1984/english/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blixo Posted February 16, 2005 Share Posted February 16, 2005 1984 loved the book.. film was not bad I suppose everyone gets something different out it... the few paragraphs below stand out in my mind. "For a moment Winston ignored the dial. He made a violent effort to raise himself into a sitting position, and merely succeeded in wrenching his body painfully. ‘But how can you control matter?’ he burst out. ‘You don't even control the climate or the law of gravity. And there are disease, pain, death—’ O'Brien silenced him by a movement of his hand. ‘We control matter because we control the mind. Reality is inside the skull. You will learn by degrees, Winston. There is nothing that we could not do. Invisibility, levitation — anything. I could float off this floor like a soap bubble if I wish to. I do not wish to, because the Party does not wish it. You must get rid of those nineteenth-century ideas about the laws of Nature. We make the laws of Nature.’ ‘But you do not! You are not even masters of this planet. What about Eurasia and Eastasia? You have not conquered them yet.’ ‘Unimportant. We shall conquer them when it suits us. And if we did not, what difference would it make? We can shut them out of existence. Oceania is the world.’ ‘But the world itself is only a speck of dust. And man is tiny helpless! How long has he been in existence? For millions of years the earth was uninhabited.’ ‘Nonsense. The earth is as old as we are, no older. How could it be older? Nothing exists except through human consciousness.’ ‘But the rocks are full of the bones of extinct animals — mammoths and mastodons and enormous reptiles which lived here long before man was ever heard of.’ ‘Have you ever seen those bones, Winston? Of course not. Nineteenth-century biologists invented them. Before man there was nothing. After man, if he could come to an end, there would be nothing. Outside man there is nothing.’" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
access55 Posted February 16, 2005 Share Posted February 16, 2005 Also available here.... in PDF. http://www.msxnet.org/orwell/print/1984.pdf Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sirdick Posted February 16, 2005 Share Posted February 16, 2005 I did what you did Mission. I thought it was a good film, some things confused me though, and since I hadn't read the book before I think I had ideas about what the film was like beforehand, and they were a bit wrong. I think I'm going to have to read the book. That might take a while though since someone posted about the new Hitchiker's film I decided I'm going to read that first Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Declan Posted February 17, 2005 Share Posted February 17, 2005 Which film version one was? There was a xxxxty one in the eighties (but then most things in the eighties were xxxxty) but there is an earlier, better one. I wouldn't bother reading the book, though. It is rather dull in places and the point of reading a political parable decades after it ceased to be relevent is rather lost on me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mission Posted February 17, 2005 Author Share Posted February 17, 2005 It was released in 1984 Declan, starring John Hurt and Richard Burton in his final screen role. After checking on imdb I can see two previous versions (both for tv) one from 1954 and one from 1965. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave the Cardboard Box Posted February 17, 2005 Share Posted February 17, 2005 decades after it ceased to be relevent is rather lost on me. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Declan - I am surprised at you. That book is even more relevant now than ever. One of the main concepts of the book, apart from parodying the Soviet methods, was to show how people are kept in check, made to do things normally unacceptable, made to accept things to their detriment - by setting up an imaginary enemy - or demonising another culture.... Just to keep the people in check and compliant, and to ensure their own lengthy stay in power and privilege. If you saw the documentary series a few weeks ago, I think it was called "The Power of Nightmares" you will see the parallels - The American right wing have to have an enemy - and if there isn't one they will make it up. Mr. Bush was returned because they stoked up the fear of attack and demonised the Muslim world. Most of the American population were too cowed and uninformed to risk someone in charge who may be more friendly with the 'enemy'. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
monkey_magic Posted February 17, 2005 Share Posted February 17, 2005 And the enemy was communism before it was terrorism. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sirdick Posted February 17, 2005 Share Posted February 17, 2005 It was the 1984 version, which they filmed at the time when the story was set (it said at the end). Was the earlier version the TV one with Peter Cushing? I've only seen clips of that one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mission Posted February 17, 2005 Author Share Posted February 17, 2005 1954 version 1965 version Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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