Network (1976)

A television network cynically exploits a deranged former anchor's ravings and revelations about the news media for its own profit.

Director:

Sidney Lumet

Writer:

Paddy Chayefsky

Stars:

Faye Dunaway, William Holden, Peter Finch

Top Rated Movies #193 | Won 4 Oscars. Another 16 wins & 26 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
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

Storyline

In the 1970s, terrorist violence is the stuff of networks' nightly news programming and the corporate structure of the UBS Television Network is changing. Meanwhile, Howard Beale, the aging UBS news anchor, has lost his once strong ratings share and so the network fires him. Beale reacts in an unexpected way. We then see how this affects the fortunes of Beale, his coworkers (Max Schumacher and Diana Christensen), and the network.

---

Plot Keywords:

media | television | television network | ranting | tv ratings | 

---

Taglines:

Television will never be the same!

---

Genres:

Drama

---

Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

27 November 1976 (USA)

Also Known As:

Network

Filming Locations:

CFTO-TV Studios, Scarborough, Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Company Credits

Production Co:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

121 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Metrocolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

When Diana and Max are discussing adding Sybil the Soothsayer to the UBS Network Evening News, Diana claims that there are actual tarot card readers and other prognosticators offering investment advice on Wall Street. While there have been rumors of fortune tellers working on Wall Street for many decades, the prohibitions against SEC-registered investment advisers assuring their clients of success has had a dampening effect on many would-be soothsayers registering to be able to give investment advice, until recently. Starting in 2008, with the economic meltdown, many more fortune tellers have become registered with the SEC, and more and more clients are turning to them for their securities recommendations.

---

Goofs

The credits declare that Network was "filmed in Panavision" which is usually reserved for films in 2.35 to 1 scope. The credit was probably meant declare that the film was made with Panavision equipment.

---

Quotes

[first lines]
Narrator: This story is about Howard Beale, who was the news anchorman on UBS TV. In his time, Howard Beale had been a mandarin of television, the grand old man of news, with a HUT rating of 16 and a 28 audience share. In 1969, however, his fortunes began to decline. He fell to a 22 share. The following year, his wife died, and he was left a childless widower with an 8 rating and a 12 share. He became morose and isolated, began to drink heavily, and on September 22, 1975, he was fired, ...
[...]

---

Connections

Spoofed in Dietland: Monster High (2018)

User Reviews

Network: A World Gone "Mad As Hell!"

"Network" is the satirical movie written by Paddy Chayefsky, and directed by Sidney Lumet. The main character, Howard Beele, was a respected news anchor who hit a slump. When he's fired from his desk, he finally snaps. His ravings reveal the truth, and he is soon dubbed "The Mad Prophet of the Airwaves." Today, in the age of trash TV, "Network" still has significance. There are several aspects of the story that ring true today with TV news: the sacrifice of journalistic integrity in the scramble for ratings, and media bias fueled by sweetheart deals by rich special interests. Knowing that this exists in the world is enough to make anyone mad as hell.