Network

"Well, if there's anybody out there that can look around this demented slaughterhouse of a world we live in and tell me that man is a noble creature, believe me: That man is full of bullshit." Every day on the news, a headline is passed-by – a man was killed today – a woman was robbed yesterday – a couple is hit-and-killed – an explosion goes off and kills several; just numbers, just moments of teeth-sucking, that pang you in the gut – but you move on – because of the adapted normalcy to the insanity of the state of the world. It's right in front of us – the daily, senseless killing of humans, but human life has lost its very meaning. Driven instead by sensationalism: What pulls the most views, what enrages, what stirs an emotive response within the viewers at home who so desperately want to escape from a screen that has an off-button? The public is enslaved by the intrigue, the complacency we hold in the face of injustice. 'Oh that's awful,' is all we can say as we engross ourselves into a world of normal-monstrosity...no no, we're awful for standing-by to fuel the chugging of ratings and the creation of illicit stories – and the banality of globalization. Network has a lot of screaming. Apart from the sensational, and counter-culture show that Howard Beale (The Mad Prophet) hosts, and rises-the-charts with; we are exposed to the corporate angst, and soulless archetype of its ethics. Screaming is sometimes the only thing we can do – the hands of God are replaced with the viewership of millions – and the distribution of mass-violence through a incalculably influential piece of medium; the television. Once America, once the rest of the world became connected with one another – the truth is eradicated – reports become fear-mongering; meant to conventionalize the public into a blender of complacency. A vessel that exposes us to the atrocities, and dark under-belly to violence – one can only dull themselves to the on-screen suffering; and become attuned with the corruption of the camera. An overhead of clouds, that surround the very cities that we live in – much more than a natural phenomenon of atmosphere, or weather – but instead a man-made smog. A pollution of sorts, and a false sense of intellectualism – a new era has dawned long ago – one of illiteracy, and some abysmal abomination that evokes anti-intellectualism. News, and the network with its savage morality is our thoughts, our thinking and our values; a cavern of faceless echoes – all originating from the same entrance – the media. It's satirical, its funny, its scoff-worthy; but that's because it's so absurd to watch to realize this is merely a hint of exaggeration. A sense of free-will hits you as you choose to watch a masterful display of acting, writing and directing – but it's lost in the profound speeches that Beale gives to his audience (who seem to be much more than the fictional viewers at home: we become spectators, and listeners ourselves) corporate interests, no matter how moving, inspiring and humane aspects of society and communication ground themselves as – corporate interests dictate everything. From the news, to the way we choose to unoriginally dictate our own lives. Life is much more whole, much more total and universal than we think – thousands of international currencies – yet we remain entwined with one sole practice, and business. Extortion of individuals, and unanimity with societal problems that remain relevant; purposefully left disarray, and unsolved. Acting is an understatement. Media controls out very lives, and it's far too late to reverse its effects. Entertainment is king, and truth – with its meaningful discourse is its slave. Society is replaceable, filled to the brim in mass-production – creatures govern the Earth – not humans. Lumet combines these rare-truths with some of the biggest, most in-your-soul performances. It takes a cast this good to realize that you're angry with the state of the world, and how useless you are against it's vice-like-grip on you.