Brave New World

1980
6.6| 3h0m| en
Details

A man who grew up in a primitive society educating himself by reading Shakespeare is allowed to join the futuristic society where his parents are from. However, he cannot adapt to their repressive ways.

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Reviews

Nonureva Really Surprised!
Exoticalot People are voting emotionally.
Borserie it is finally so absorbing because it plays like a lyrical road odyssey that’s also a detective story.
Juana what a terribly boring film. I'm sorry but this is absolutely not deserving of best picture and will be forgotten quickly. Entertaining and engaging cinema? No. Nothing performances with flat faces and mistaking silence for subtlety.
christopher-lord This is naturally a low-budget TV version, but it's long enough to go into the themes of the book in some depth, and follows the plot and dialogue accurately enough. It gives the impression of a theatre version really, with the cheap sets and costumes: or maybe the original Star Trek is closer to it, with the pyjamas. So you never forget that it's an adaptation of a novel; which I realise must be a problem for those expecting Blade Runner or something. I thought everyone did a commendable job on this given the limitations of the budget, and while it's not great cinema, it captures the spirit of Huxley's work, and in particular it was nice to hear the Shakespeare quotations very nicely done.
heath crouch This movie was revolutionary because it showed what medical science could lead us to one day. The movie was based off the book and the book was written in 1931, so you can see Aldous Huxley's vivid imagination of what the world would be like hundreds of years down the road following the perfection of cloning. Stem cell research is not all bad but continuing practicing to clone could very well lead us down the "Brave New World" path. Now I don't fully believe that the world will turn out that way, but if you researched the origin of any of the greatest technology we have today you will see that the ideas for them started with a vision. Those visions, along with dedicated practice and increasingly advanced technology, have helped us get to the point we are now. I just thought this movie was interesting because it gave us a glimpse of what our world might be like in 2540, if not sooner. Scientists are working vigorously on stem cell and stem cell related studies and now that Obama has just allowed the practice to continue, it is only a matter of time before it is perfected.
Five5Creative I have to say I'm surprised at the number of people here who loved this adaptation of Aldous Huxley's masterpiece. Although it was true to the basic storyline, they strayed so far from the mood and tone of the novel.The production design was quite simply wrong. This is a society of people (the Alphas and Betas at least) who frolicked in luxury. They weren't confined to the indoors or lived within a warren of pipes and tubes and industrial architecture. Huxley went to great lengths to describe an environment replete with spas, golf courses, towering apartment buildings with comfortably furnished rooms, floodlit buildings, the skies dotted with personal transports, expensive clothing of silks, brocades, velvet (always thrown away rather than mended -- "The less stitches, the more riches!"). These people socialized, danced, played games, dined out, indulged in their "soma holidays" as well as their vacations and weekend excursions all over the world.Huxley was creating a juxtaposition of opposing themes -- all of that luxury and yet no free thought, no philosophy, no love, no personal loyalties.None of that is adequately conveyed in this adaptation.Further, the way the characters in this movie spoke so frankly about the structure of their society would never have happened. They would not be so self-aware of what their lives were like versus how different it used to be. Only the very higher-ups had such awareness and even they kept that awareness hidden.Taking John Savage's back-story from the middle of the book and placing it at the beginning as part of the linear story was a needless distraction, not to mention insulting to the viewer by "dumbing down" the series of events.Bud Cort was perfectly cast but his portrayal invited too much sympathy. He was an outcast yes because of his physical shortcomings but his character was written to be very reactionary to that, resentful of those around him. He was selfish and bitter, and later even vain in his triumph of discovering the savage.Nor was he the tragic romantic hero who sought out his individual love as depicted in this movie. His character sought acceptance by a society of Alpha Pluses who turned their noses at him. He wanted to be handsome and dashing and take as many women as he liked -- all that was denied him by "too much alcohol in his blood surrogate" while bottled.I could go on, but my point is to not cite differences. All movie adaptations differ from their source material. The trick is make the best possible interpretation of the novel while still holding true to the basic themes expressed by the author, maintaining the integrity of his story, characters and artistic intent.This movie did none of that. It was Buck Rogers in scope, caliber and execution. I was thoroughly disappointed.
bradnfrank As others have said, this 1980 version of "Brave New World" is far superior to the 1998 version. But what nobody has mentioned, probably because they aren't even aware of it, is that the 1980 film exists in 2 different versions.This was originally produced as a 2-part mini-series, running 4 hours (including commercials). But at the last minute, NBC chopped it down to fit into a 3-hour time slot. Allowing for commercials, this means that more than half an hour was removed. When it was later aired on the BBC in England, it ran in its original full length, 2-part form.There are many collectors offering copies of this movie via the IMDb message boards, or eBay. Before buying, I suggest you ask which version they have. (I can personally recommend the copy offered by "deaks".)