Talk:Network (film)

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Contents 1 Release date 2 Stanley Kubrick 3 Who is antagonist/protagonist? 4 Confusing plot description 5 "Mad prophet of the airways" 6 Acting awards 7 Suggestion 8 Spacing before TOC

[edit] Release date

The Network article, which used to discuss this movie, claimed the film was "released in 1977". Someone might want to check which date is correct.

That article summarized the film as being "about the on-air mental breakdwon of a newscaster and how that breakdown makes him a celebrity."

--Ryguasu 16:46 Dec 3, 2002 (UTC)

According to imdb it was first released in New York in 27 November 1976.

[edit] Stanley Kubrick

According to Joe Eszterhas in his book “The Devil’s Guide to Hollywood,” Stanley Kubrick wanted to direct “Network,” but Paddy Chayefsky objected him. Does anyone know if this is a true fact?

[edit] Who is antagonist/protagonist?

In the trivia section it says "Dunaway and Finch have no scenes together, despite being arguably the main protagonist and antagonist of the film.", though it is unclear as to who is the primary antagonist, and who is the primary protagonist. In fact, the ordering suggests that Dunaway is the protagonist, and Finch is the Antagonist, though I would argue quite the opposite.--68.248.33.145 02:19, 1 August 2006 (UTC)

OK then <pedantry>This would be an ecumenical matter, as to the application of the terms, if they are applied to 'the Network' she is clearly the pro and Finch the an. In terms of major and minor acting roles Dunaways perspective is followed closely whereas Finch less so.</pedantry> 83.70.28.138 03:56, 28 April 2007 (UTC)

Holden is the actual protagonist of this film, Finch is the comic relief and catalyst rolled into one. If it weren't for Max's long standing journalistic integrity, Dunaway would have nothing to rebel against. 'Howard Beale' is the jester, almost a Greek style chorus in this film; while he steals the show, he's somewhat incidental to the actual theme of the film (the dehumanization of the broadcasting industry). Gyoza1138 09:25, 17 June 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Confusing plot description

Having not seen the film, I can't correct the plot as described, but it seems to contradict itself or at least have a tenuous grasp of how things work. Here's the part I'm having trouble with:

As the story opens, the audience learns that longtime network news anchor Howard Beale (played by Peter Finch), who hosts the UBS Evening News, has been fired due to low ratings. The following night, Beale announces live on-air...

Wait, he was fired but still allowed to go live on the air? This defies belief. Then:

...Beale announces live on-air that he will commit suicide by getting a gun and "blowing his brains out" during an upcoming broadcast...UBS immediately fires him after this incident...

Hold on, wasn't he already fired? This just doesn't make sense. First of all, when an on-air personality is fired, they're done, they don't appear on the air again, they're gone. Now, if he was asked to resign — technically a firing but with the allowance to finish out some term of employment with grace — then that is what should be said. If what the writer meant was that his show had been cancelled, or that he was being replaced as anchor, that's not the same thing as being fired (he's still employed by the network, just in a different capacity), and shouldn't be described in that way. As for "immediately" firing someone who has already been fired...that just makes no sense at all. Some rewriting is needed here, the meaning is unclear. --Canonblack 15:36, 14 October 2006 (UTC)

[edit] "Mad prophet of the airways"

I thought it was "airwaves", as I'm sure most people do, but the script [1] confirms the word is in fact "airways". -- Gridlock Joe 20:18, 1 February 2007 (UTC)

! Maikel (talk) 20:42, 4 April 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Acting awards

It says that this film won 3 out of the 5 acting awards. My understanding is that there are only 4 (best and supporting actor and actress). Is there a fifth that I'm unaware of? Thestorm042 11:57, 18 February 2007 (UTC)

There are 4 acting categories, but two actors in the film were nominated for the same award, so they won 3 of their 5 nominations, not categories. 68.101.92.72 11:31, 9 July 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Suggestion

Might I suggest replacing satirical with prophetic in the opening sentence. 83.70.28.138 03:34, 28 April 2007 (UTC)

I agree Gloriamarie 08:59, 30 July 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Spacing before TOC

Why the spacing and the notice not to remove? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.171.9.48 (talk) 00:09, 8 June 2008 (UTC)