Network (1976) - IMDb

2025.05.15 14:03

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Network

1976 R 2h 1m IMDb RATING 8.1 / 10 179K YOUR RATING Rate POPULARITY 1,540 1,389 Play trailer 2 : 59 4 Videos 99+ Photos Dark Comedy Workplace Drama Drama

A television network cynically exploits a deranged former anchor's ravings and revelations about mass media for its own profit, but finds that his message may be difficult to control. A television network cynically exploits a deranged former anchor's ravings and revelations about mass media for its own profit, but finds that his message may be difficult to control. A television network cynically exploits a deranged former anchor's ravings and revelations about mass media for its own profit, but finds that his message may be difficult to control.

Director Sidney Lumet Writer Paddy Chayefsky Stars Faye Dunaway William Holden Peter Finch See production info at IMDbPro IMDb RATING 8.1 / 10 179K YOUR RATING Rate POPULARITY 1,540 1,389 Director Sidney Lumet Writer Paddy Chayefsky Stars Faye Dunaway William Holden Peter Finch 475 User reviews 130 Critic reviews 83 Metascore See production info at IMDbPro Top rated movie #238 Won 4 Oscars 20 wins & 27 nominations total

Videos 4

Trailer 2:59 Official Trailer Clip 1:09 'Network' | Anniversary Mashup Clip 1:09 'Network' | Anniversary Mashup Clip 2:45 How Gallows Humor Helped Charlize Theron Make 'Bombshell' Feel Real Clip 2:53 Does 'Joker' Exist in a Scorsese-Verse of Films?

Photos 122

Add photo + 116

Top cast 57

Edit Faye Dunaway Diana Christensen William Holden Max Schumacher Peter Finch Howard Beale Robert Duvall Frank Hackett Wesley Addy Nelson Chaney Ned Beatty Arthur Jensen Arthur Burghardt Great Ahmed Kahn Bill Burrows TV Director John Carpenter George Bosch Jordan Charney Harry Hunter Kathy Cronkite Mary Ann Gifford Ed Crowley Joe Donnelly Jerome Dempsey Walter C. Amundsen Conchata Ferrell Barbara Schlesinger Gene Gross Milton K. Steinman Stanley Grover Jack Snowden Cindy Grover Caroline Schumacher Darryl Hickman Bill Herron Director Sidney Lumet Writer Paddy Chayefsky All cast & crew Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

User reviews 475

Review 8.1 179.2K 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

Summary

Reviewers say Network is acclaimed for its biting satire on television, exploring themes like media manipulation and corporate greed. Its foresight on reality TV and societal decay is often highlighted. Peter Finch and Faye Dunaway deliver standout performances, though some find the film uneven with slow pacing, preachy dialogue, and an exaggerated plot. Despite these flaws, Network is celebrated for its enduring relevance and dark commentary on media. AI-generated from the text of user reviews Enduring legacy Performance Thought-provoking Ambitious Dialogue Social commentary Dystopian elements Pacing

Featured reviews

10 Andrea-Orsini-1

A Prophet known as Paddy Chayefsky

To think that this blackest of black comedies was made in 1976 could only means two things: 1) Nothing has changed or 2) Paddy Chayefsky was seeing the future with the most disturbing clarity. I endorse the later of the two because I believe things have changed since 1974 - I wasn t born yet, but I know because of my parents, the movies, literature, etc, etc, etc. Peter Finch as the mad prophet of the airwaves gives Chayefsky a riveting and powerful voice. The scenes between old chums Finch and William Holden are some of the best written scenes in any American movie until the Coen brothers emerged. Finch is superb, superb! and Holden, at the end of a legendary career, gives a performance of such ferocious sincerity that I rediscovered the man, the actor and felt the need to revisit some of his opus. From Golden Boy to Sunset Boulevard, Holden was a man who carried his own discomfort as a weapon. Extraordinary! However, the most alarming character in the whole thing is Faye Dunaway s. She is magnificent in her thin, nervous, bra-less attitude. She is a monster of commercial amorality. Everything in this incredible movie moves with the precision of an inspired clairvoyant s vision. Duvall s executive, Beatrice Straight s betrayed wife and Ned Beatty s god like big shot makes this one of the most frightening, entertaining, funniest, remarkable film from the 70 s. Sidney Lumet proves once more that he s as good as his material. Here he is at his zenith. 10 malikroberts16

It's so prophetic it's scary

Now, here is a film that everyone needs to see, especially today.

Children should be raised on the truth instead of fiction.

Television seduces, entertains, divides, desensitizes, and corrupts not just kids but adults as well. It s gotten so bad over the years it s like some kind of a disease now. Most people believe everything they see, read, and hear. Fortunately for me, I m not most people. There are things that I question and there are things that I know are very wrong. Lying to the American people in every possible way is very, very wrong.

I ve never seen anyone open up their window and stick out their head and yell that they re as mad as hell and they re not gonna take this anymore. I ve never seen anyone say that they were a human being and that their life had value. We re so screwed up in the head we don t even deserve to be called human beings. We re like pre-programmed, numbered, clones enslaved from the cradle to the grave; clones that are programmed and structured to obey authority of all kinds.

Network deserved the Best Picture Oscar for 76, but it lost to Rocky . How the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences allowed that to happen is beyond me.

That s all I have to say about that. 9 requiem1896

A Cynic's Dream

This is one of those wonderful films where everything comes together. The acting and the writing is by far the most impressive elements of this film. William Holden and Peter Finch should have both received Oscars for their performances, instead of just Peter Finch. Faye Dunaway pulls of the most dynamic and emotional characters she has ever played.

The true brilliance of this film is that all elements of it fade appropriately behind the actors and their messages. The film is completely a work of storytelling and, at least for the writer, stunning clarity of message and purpose. Political films come and go but few remain in the annals of film because of their effectiveness at their own message.

The cinematography, editing, sound, costume design, art direction and production design are all quite simplistic. In some scenes the film can be accused of being almost ugly. However this all lends to the back-washing of the film so as to allow the message to ring loudest. In my opinion, Sidney Lumet took this just a little too far and thus I give it a 9 instead of a 10.

This is certainly a film for the history books. Every connoisseur of film should be exposed to this movie at some point in their life. If you happen to be cynical, then you will love every minute of this movie as its stark view of life in the 1970 s (and onward) touches the hard of even the hardest of cynics. For those educators out there, GREAT film for classes on Media and Politics. 10 Sleepin_Dragon

They don't get much better than this.

Experienced, but disillusioned news Anchor Howard Beale blurts out one night that he wants to commit suicide live on air, he is fired, but the executives notice that his outburst had a positive affect on ratings, they decide to stick with the unstable news reader.

Close to fifty years old, and still brilliant. Network is an impressive film, that holds up incredibly well, and still has a powerful message. It dares to discuss the way that people are ruled by a box in the corner of a room, and that people have a morbid curiosity in disaster and tragedy, we can t help but watch it.

Two hours fly by, it s fascinating from start to finish, it really does explore the darker side of humanity, the sheer exploitation that occurs for wealth.

When you think of all that s been seen on the small screen since then, this film was almost prophetic.

This boasts an awesome cast, including William Holden, Faye Dunaway and many more, but for me it s Peter Finch that steals the show,

One minor detail that s always struck me, the American decor of the 1970 s, some of it is so tasteful.

Even now it s still a phenomenal film.

10/10. 9 MichaelMargetis

I'm mad as hell and I'm not gonna take it anymore! - Howard Beale

#1 Best Film of 1976

Network is Paddy Chafesky s riveting and grim tale of the sleaze surrounding the American television industry. Winner of the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay, Network is without a doubt one of the most powerful, influential and meaningful films ever made. One of the reasons Network was so well received by both film critics and movie-going audiences was because it possessed a certain quality that most films unfortunately lack -- intricate and involving characters in realistic situations. Network definitely makes my list of the top 10 films of the 70s, and it s an absolute shame it didn t pick up the well-deserved Best Picture Oscar at the Academy Awards ceremony in 1976.

The film follows a low-rated television network trying to keep it s head above water. The network, UBS, has decided to fire an aging veteran news anchor, Howard Beale (Peter Finch), in an act of desperation to boost ratings. Beale is given a two-week notice, and instead of going out with his tale between his legs, Beale announces on live television he was fired and is going to kill himself. This raises panic and chaos at UBS, until they get the memo that Beale s crazed rant just bumped the ratings significantly. The UBS execs, Diana Christensen (Faye Dunaway) and Frank Hackett (Robert Duvall) decide to give Beale his own show where he complains and screams bout the problems with the world, while Beale s best friend (William Holden) feels it s inappropriate for the network to take advantage of a mentally-ill man. Besides exploiting a mentally unstable man, the company execs also work out a weekly program with a anti-establishment African-American communist, Laureen Hobbs (Marlene Warfield) following political terrorists and their violent outbursts.The film also stars Beatrice Straight as Schumacher s boring wife, Conchetta Ferrell was an assistant working for the network and Ned Beatty who plays the sinister boss of the UBS television network who always gets what he wants.

Network boasts one of the finest and most intricate screenplays ever written that rightfully earned Paddy Chafesky the Oscar for Best Screenplay. Sidney Lumet s directing is absolutely incendiary and the movie has an incredibly strong cast. Faye Dunaway gives what is perhaps her very best screen performance as the cutthroat Network executive, while Robert Duvall is just as brilliant as the ruthless Frank Hackett (which should have earned him an Oscar nomination, period!) Beatrice Straight is solid in her role (not quite Oscar-worthy if you ask me, though) and Marlene Warfield is just as great as the sassy pinko sistah (excuse me for that phrasing). The two performers who really steal the show however are William Holden and Peter Finch. Both nominated for Best Actor in a Leading Role at the Academy Awards in 1977, Peter Finch gives a startling and powerful performance as the mad-as-hell (not to mention crazy-as-hell) Howard Beale, while William Holden gives a subtle but none-the-less outstanding performance as the conflicted Max Schumacher. It s hard to say who was better, but if I absolutely had to decide I d choose Holden s non-Oscar-winning performance slightly over Finch s sympathy Oscar-winning performance (he still was extraordinary,m though). I honestly believe if Finch hadn t died just after the film, Holden would have taken home the Oscar gold for Best Leading Actor, both were still magnificent though. The only player in the cast that I felt wasn t that great was Ned Beatty. In a role far-deserving from an Oscar nomination (which he for some odd reason received), Beatty plays the angry little man role he always does. Besides Beatty s performance and marginal pacing problems towards the middle (you are gonna get that in any 70s film that isn t a Kubrick film), the movie is utterly perfect.

I can t recommend you seeing Network highly enough. If you want a carefully made motion picture that makes you think and reflect on how cutthroat our society has become (especially TV broadcasting), Network is a absolute must. What are you waiting for, go out and rent Network ! It might just alter your perspective on things. Grade: A-

MADE MY TOP 300 LIST AT #46

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Storyline

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Did you know

Edit Trivia Peter Finch was desperate to win the role of Howard Beale once he had read the script. He even offered to pay his own airfare to New York City for the screentest. But Sidney Lumet was concerned about Finch s Australian accent. Finch won the part after sending Lumet a recording of himself reading the New York Times with a perfect American accent. Goofs Every one of Howard Beale s shows has the same studio audience (note the man in the black vest, with long hair and a beard). Quotes

Howard Beale : I don't have to tell you things are bad. Everybody knows things are bad. It's a depression. Everybody's out of work or scared of losing their job. The dollar buys a nickel's worth, banks are going bust, shopkeepers keep a gun under the counter. Punks are running wild in the street and there's nobody anywhere who seems to know what to do, and there's no end to it. We know the air is unfit to breathe and our food is unfit to eat, and we sit watching our TVs while some local newscaster tells us that today we had fifteen homicides and sixty-three violent crimes, as if that's the way it's supposed to be. We know things are bad - worse than bad. They're crazy. It's like everything everywhere is going crazy, so we don't go out anymore. We sit in the house, and slowly the world we are living in is getting smaller, and all we say is, 'Please, at least leave us alone in our living rooms. Let me have my toaster and my TV and my steel-belted radials and I won't say anything. Just leave us alone.' Well, I'm not gonna leave you alone. I want you to get mad! I don't want you to protest. I don't want you to riot - I don't want you to write to your congressman because I wouldn't know what to tell you to write. I don't know what to do about the depression and the inflation and the Russians and the crime in the street. All I know is that first you've got to get mad. You've got to say, 'I'm a HUMAN BEING, God damn it! My life has VALUE!' So I want you to get up now. I want all of you to get up out of your chairs. I want you to get up right now and go to the window. Open it, and stick your head out, and yell, 'I'M AS MAD AS HELL, AND I'M NOT GOING TO TAKE THIS ANYMORE!' I want you to get up right now, sit up, go to your windows, open them and stick your head out and yell - 'I'm as mad as hell and I'm not going to take this anymore!' Things have got to change. But first, you've gotta get mad! You've got to say, 'I'm as mad as hell, and I'm not going to take this anymore!' Then we'll figure out what to do about the depression and the inflation and the oil crisis. But first get up out of your chairs, open the window, stick your head out, and yell, and say it: "I'M AS MAD AS HELL, AND I'M NOT GOING TO TAKE THIS ANYMORE!"

Crazy credits Paddy Chayefsky s credit in the opening credits says by Paddy Chayefsky (rather than written by Paddy Chayefsky or a variant thereof). Connections Edited into Amérique, notre histoire (2006)

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FAQ 22

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Details

Edit Release date November 27, 1976 (United States) Country of origin United States Language English Also known as Poder que mata Filming locations CTV Toronto Studios - 9 Channel Nine Court, Scarborough, Ontario, Canada (as CFTO-TV Studios, Control room and news studio scenes) Production company Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) See more company credits at IMDbPro

Box office

Edit Budget $3,800,000 (estimated) Gross US & Canada $23,689,877 Gross worldwide $23,701,317 See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

Tech specs

Edit Runtime 2 hours 1 minute Color Color Sound mix Mono Aspect ratio 1.85 : 1

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