August 12, 2005 |

NETWORK (DVD)

Cliffnotes review:
Nostradamus made movies?

This film goes to: 10
Rated (R)


Directed by: Sidney Lumet
Starring: Faye Dunaway, William Holden, Peter Finch, Robert Duvall, Conchata Ferrell
Written by: Paddy Chayefsky


120 minutes
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
1976

Would someone please explain to me why modern film sucks so much? Maybe it is because everything I seem to watch from other eras has been pre-filtered but occasionally I get the opportunity to see pure genius unfold before me on screen and I am reminded that today's film makers just aren't cutting it…

"Network" is a well-crafted piece of celluloid that holds up quite nicely in the feeding-frenzy mentality that defines modern media. Centered around the mental breakdown/complete insanity of a national news anchor, "Network" provides enough dark humor and cynical outlook to keep the most jaded film fanatic glued to the screen.

Peter Finch plays Howard Beal, longstanding national news anchorperson whose ratings have slumped to embarrassing lows. Upon hearing the news that his program is in jeopardy and that he will be losing his job, Beal promptly delivers the news that he will commit suicide on the air the following week. This announcement creates a veritable firestorm within the station but results in an inevitable surge in ratings as the prurient public latches onto the decree and can't keep their eyes off Beal's show. What are the higher-ups to do? Cancel the program and lose ratings share? Leave him on the air and risk the consequences that occur when a raving lunatic is running the show? Money holds out over compassion as Beal is allowed to continue his broadcasts no matter how maniacal they become. All of this is engineered by upstart Diana Christensen, amazingly portrayed by Faye Dunaway, a power hungry uber-yuppie (way before that phrase was coined) whose haughty aspirations for career success are unbridled. She quickly builds on the success of Beal's program to develop "reality TV" based on the escapades of a national terrorist organization from whom she received, and aired, unedited footage of a bank robbery. Worlds soon collide and all hell breaks loose.

Social commentary runs amok throughout as "Network" provides an adept look at today's cesspool that most of us call "nightly news". Who wrote this thing, anyway, Nostradamus? (Actually, it was Paddy Chayefsky, whom I would kiss for his efforts had he not died in 1981.) This film practically predicts the evolution of network news and throws a heavy dose of "reality TV" to boot. Normally I tend to shy away from Academy Award winning efforts as the Academy tends to miss the boat in most cases but this appears to be one of those years where they actually got things right (Network raked in four: Peter Finch, Best Actor; Faye Dunaway, Best Actress; Beatrice Straight, Best Supporting Actress; and the aforementioned Paddy Chayefsky, Best Writing, Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen). Looking to blow a couple of hours and not feel ripped off? Skip the latest Ah-nold vehicle and rent "Network".

DVD Details:
"Network" definitely shows its age a bit here with a transfer that simply looks "old". This is probably due more to the techniques used in the original filming vs. any fault of the transfer. Fortunately, this doesn't really detract from the experience too terribly and the film is presented in a wide screen, anamorphic 1.85:1 aspect ratio and Dolby 1.0 sound. English, French and Spanish subtitles are also included.

As far as extras go, the DVD for "Network" provides an interesting look at the Neilson Ratings system (Easter-egged in the "Special Features" section-hit your right arrow on the remote until the button on the TV is highlighted then hit "enter") and an interactive quiz game that was more of a time waster than informative.

Thoughtful strategy. Practical execution.

Clear thinking, honest perspectives, and experience shaped by years of doing the work. No shortcuts, no borrowed opinions, just lessons learned by showing up, solving problems, and following ideas all the way through.

Four hikers with backpacks walking along a rocky mountain ridge under a blue sky
May 8, 2026
We are each our own greatest inhibitor. People don’t want to do new things if they think they’re going to be bad at them or people are going to laugh at them. You have to be willing to subject yourself to failure, to be bad, to fall on your head and do it again, and try stuff that you’ve never done in order to be the best you can be. ~ Laird Hamilton Yesterday: Hit Range Balls/Hike – Casa del Critters, 1:15 Today: Run – GGCSP, ~2 hours Tomorrow: Ride – Somewhere singlespeedy, ~2 hours Yesterday, Rach and I took a nice stroll in the woods around our house. The songbirds were going crazy-nuts and surprisingly, we only saw one other person walking his dog. I love where we live – close proximity to fun trails and the ability to get away from it all in just a short walk from our house. During lunch yesterday, I went to the driving range to get a few cuts in before playing a round of golf with my dad next week. I don’t get to play very often so need to brush up on my skills (or lack thereof) whenever I can. I am looking forward to playing with my pops and hope to break 100. I shot a 102 the last time I played so I am within striking distance of the sub-triple-digit score. We’ll see how things go. I usually do okay for most of the round and then fall apart on a couple of holes pushing my score way up. Dad shoots in the low 80s usually (I think). I am not sure I will ever play enough to be that good but it is fun to get out on the course now and again. I also went to see Dr. Paul yesterday for my ankle problem (which seems to have been resolved) and my knee (which is still a bit swollen but has decreased in size markedly over the past several days). The knee stems from my unscheduled nose-dive back in May (see this post for details). The shot some pictures and believe that everything is a-ok so that was good news. I just need to select better places for splashdowns in the future. And today is Luke’s birthday. Age is one place where I will always beat him but visit his blog to congratulate him on trying to catch up. Until next time…
Runner silhouetted at sunset on a rocky trail, mid-stride between hills.
May 8, 2026
Progress comes from the intelligent use of experience. ~ Elbert Hubbard Yesterday: Run – Casa del Critters/Flume, 1 hour 15 minutes Today: Ride/Hike/Relax Tomorrow: Run/Hike – Pawnee/Buchanan Passes, 6 hours? Yesterday I ran around the house. Not literally, mind you, but in the neighborhood. It was a gorgeous evening – calm, cool. Perfect. The wildflowers are really starting to take off up here and I was treated with a bold display of color throughout my run. Tons of Columbine lined the trailside as I ran on old mining roads and singletrack trails. It is really fun to see how much differently I am able to handle familiar terrain. I used to have difficulties running this loop and would have to walk major sections. Last night, I ran the entire loop without trouble and was able to moderate my speed to maintain a steady cadence through the run. Good times. Contracting is staying steady. A bit of a drop-off this week given the holiday but I am still managing to put in a decent number of hours. I picked up another new project today and will need to get started immediately to ensure that it gets completed on time.  Tomorrow, we are going to head up Pawnee Pass and loop back around to Buchanan Pass in the northern Indian Peaks Wilderness. This should be a fun challenge as we’ll get up pretty high, have to navigate some snow (most likely) and will be out for quite awhile. I am looking forward to it for sure . Movie time: I forgot to mention Shopgirl, a Steve Martin vehicle, we watched the other night. I wasn’t quite sure what to expect but found this to be a charming film about loneliness. It was well acted and would recommend it for sure. The pacing is steady throughout and some might find it a little on the slow side but it was an engaging film that had a lot to say without being overly sappy.
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February 20, 2026
In case you hadn’t seen these (and also for my friends at Adventure Film ), here are a couple of must-see running movies from Joel Wolpert:  Geoff Roes: Slogging to the Top