Brave New World (1998)

In a futuristic totalitarian utopian society, babies are created through genetic engineering, everyone has a predestined place in society and their minds are conditioned to follow the rules. A tragic outsider jeopardizes the status quo.

Directors:

Leslie Libman, Larry Williams

Writers:

Aldous Huxley (book), Dan Mazur (teleplay)

Stars:

Peter Gallagher, Leonard Nimoy, Tim Guinee

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Peter Gallagher	...	Bernard Marx
Leonard Nimoy	...	Mustapha Mond
Tim Guinee	...	John Cooper
Rya Kihlstedt	...	Lenina Crowne
Sally Kirkland	...	Linda
Patrick J. Dancy	...	Henry Foster
Steven Flynn	...	James
Wendy Benson-Landes	...	Fanny (as Wendy Benson)
Steven Schub	...	Beta Clerk
Daniel Dae Kim	...	Ingram
Miguel Ferrer	...	Director of Hatcheries and Conditioning
Angela Oh	...	Delta Coffee Server
Jacob Chase	...	Gabriel
Nicholas Belgrave	...	Alpha Student Boy #1 (as Nick Belgrave)
Katie DeShan	...	Alpha Student Girl #1

Storyline

In a futuristic totalitarian utopian society, babies are created through genetic engineering, everyone has a predestined place in society and their minds are conditioned to follow the rules. A tragic outsider jeopardizes the status quo.

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Plot Keywords:

futuristic | genetic engineering | one world government | sins of the father | taking responsibility | 

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Genres:

Drama | Sci-Fi

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Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

19 April 1998 (USA)

Also Known As:

Brave New World

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Dan Wigutow Productions, HOF Productions, Michael R. Joyce Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

87 min

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The book, "Brave New World" that this movie's based on, has been banned in many places, including Ireland in 1932. It was Huxley's 5th novel. It was also based on many people, including Freud and Jung, and each character is based off of someone as well. Also, the book has many references to Shakespeare, and some of his banned works.

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Connections

Version of Brave New World (1980)

User Reviews

The medium is the message . . .

This Hollywood makeover stylistically embodies many of the points made in the text; the victory of shallowness over sincerity, style over substance, sloganism over communication -- the movie is less than the book in so many of the ways that mankind is made less in the Brave New World. Coincidence? But who DOES read Shakespeare? Or for that matter, Huxley? If the movie were made true to it's original form, the intelligentsia would cheer and marvel just as they admired the original masterpiece, but what of those who need these insights the most? This movie reaches out to the brainwashed: the production / consumption units among us born and bred in the artifice of western civilization. Who needs these concepts more? Those who have already ascertained the game, muttering amongst themselves in coffee houses? Or those to whom the idea that this so-called reality is somehow "less" than the uncivilized world is a new idea and difficult to swallow . . . even in small bites? The American public is deeply asleep in a shared symbolic consciousness that obliterates the real. This movie eases the uninitiated into awareness through a television medium with which they are familiar and can relate. The characters, their motivations and dynamics have an air of familiarity in the TV world. It has the familiar hooks and subplots that would be expected in a quest for ratings, but is that all bad when it floats out at least some of the book's main ideas in a palatable form, diluting yet expanding Huxley's reach? The movie DOES make many valid and thoughtful statements that just don't get a lot of airplay in this society and deserves credit for making some bold statements - especially right before commercials.

I think the purists are being too harsh. This version of Brave New World reaches the most important audience - the uninitiated - in a way that's entertaining and understandable. It's a good start, and I recommend it as such.