It was the right year to do an adaptation of Orwell's famous novel. John Hurt stars as the central character, a lowly paper pusher in a dark, Dystopian civilization which emphasizes drudgery if nothing else. He works in a very grey office arena (brown is actually the color palette stressed), stuck in his cubicle all the workday. But, his home space isn't really better; seeing him walking home, the area looks like its been shelled, the aftermath of some war, and they haven't bothered to clean it up. This is like an extreme version of the worst days of the Soviet Union. Citizens are gathered into seated rallies in which everyone bleats like sheep (metaphorically speaking) in obedience to Big Brother. But, there's also the infamous ThoughtPolice - when Hurt starts an illicit affair with a free-thinking young woman, he is doomed. Richard Burton also stars as the interrogator, a high-ranking official in the ruling order. Big Brother will always get you eventually; in our reality, there's the IRS. BoG's Score:
6.5 out of 10
Orwellian Trivia: there was also a 1956 film version and a TV BBC production in 1954.
