Lord of the Flies (1963)

Director:

Peter Brook

Writers:

Peter Brook (writer)
William Golding (novel)

Release Date:

13 August 1963 (USA)

Genre:

Adventure | Drama | Thriller

Tagline:

Evil is inherent in the human mind, whatever innocence may cloak it...

Plot:

Shipwrecked on an island, the castaway boys eventually revert to savagery despite the few rational kids' attempts to prevent that.

Plot Keywords:

Island | Hunting | Survivor | Young Boy | Stranded

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

James Aubrey	...	Ralph
Tom Chapin	...	Jack
Hugh Edwards	...	Piggy
Roger Elwin	...	Roger
Tom Gaman	...	Simon
Roger Allan	...	Piers
David Brunjes	...	Donald
Peter Davy	...	Peter
Kent Fletcher	...	Percival Wemys Madison
Nicholas Hammond	...	Robert
Christopher Harris	...	Bill
Alan Heaps	...	Neville
Jonathan Heaps	...	Howard
Burnes Hollyman	...	Douglas
Andrew Horne	...	Matthew

Runtime:

92 min

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

UK:AA (original rating) | UK:PG (video rating) | Iceland:12 | Finland:K-11 | Australia:PG

Filming Locations:

Chattanooga, Tennessee, USA

Company:

Two Arts Ltd.

Trivia:

According to the filmmaker's commentary on the DVD version of this film, because of the loud noise from the sea and jungle on the beaches of the islands on which the movie was set, none of the dialogue could be recorded on the actual locations where the scenes were filmed. Instead, at the end of each day, the actors would be taken to a quiet location in the interior of the islands, where the dialogue for the scenes they had just filmed would be recorded and re-dubbed during the editing process. The one exception is the scene where Piggy tells some of the younger children how his hometown of Camberly got its name (which is also the only scene in the movie which is not based on a scene in the original book.)

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: In at least one point in the movie (the scene at the beginning where Ralph is talking about the "rules") his voice is different; sounds like a completely different person (or perhaps by the time overdubbing was done, the actor's voice had changed).

Quotes:

Ralph: You let the fire go out.
Jack: We needed meat.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Unaccompanied Minors (2006)

Primal Horror

It has been three years since I read the book and saw the movie, and I have still not forgotten it. "Lord of the Flies" is one of the most harrowing film expiriences I have ever seen.

You don't need Hannibal Lecter to make a movie scary, and this movie proves it. Actually, a film is most scary when it provokes fear on a most basic level. This is not a story that is scary because of plot twists or original characters. This film is scary because it uses techniques that will scare anyone in the deepest way.

The plot is simple. School boys crash land on a remote island with no adults. The boys set up their own government, with Ralph in charge. But things start to fall apart very quickly.

The set up is perfect. All the boys are perfectly cast, and their performances are strong all around. All the characters are likable in the beginning, which is important because as Roger Ebert (I think) said, a person is scarier when the viewer knows more about them.

The directing is perfect. Even though the film is in black and white, the imagery still retains a sense of wonder and awe. Each shot is perfectly used to create the optimum effect. Pacing is key here, because if it is too slow, the film gets boring, but if it goes by too fast, the film feels rushed. The director nails it perfectly. He starts out slow but even, but as the story degenerates into madness, the intensity grows, which magnifies the fear.