Product Description

After The Atomic War the world is divided into three states. London is the capital of Oceania, ruled by a party who has total control over all its citizens. Winston Smith is one of the bureaucrats, rewriting history in one of the departments. One day he commits the crime of falling in love with Julia. They try to escape Big Brother's listening and viewing devices, but, of course, nobody can really escape... Written by Mattias Thuresson {mattias.thuresson@mbox300.swipnet.se} In the year 1984, rocket bombs and rats prey on the inhabitants of the crumbling metropolis of London. Far away on the Malabar Front, a seemingly interminable war rages against Eastasia. The Ministry of Truth broadcasts ceaselessly to the population via its inescapable network of telescreens. These devices, which pervade all aspects of peoples' lives, are also capable of monitoring their every word and action. They form part of an elaborate surveillance system used by the Ministry of Love, and its dreaded agents the Thought Police, to serve their singular goal: the elimination of 'thoughtcrime'. Winston Smith is a Party worker - part of the vast social caste known as the Outer Party, the rank and file of the sprawling apparatus of government. Winston works in the Records Department of the Ministry of Truth - the section charged with modifying historical news archives for consistency. When by chance Winston uncovers incontrovertible proof that the Party is lying, he embarks on a journey of self-questioning. In doing so, he becomes a thought-criminal. Winston begins to notice that a young Party member, Julia, is watching him. She wears the distinctive sash of the ultra-zealous Anti Sex League and Winston fears that she is an informant. However, to his surprise, she reveals herself as a subversive and they embark on an illicit and dangerous relationship. This prompts Winston to explore deeper the blur between propaganda and reality. Ultimately, it leads him to O'Brien - a member of the Inner Party who sets Winston on an irreversible course of discovery. Written by richard.leader@gmail.com

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #33531 in DVD
• Released on: 2009-05-01
• Format: NTSC
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 113 minutes

Customer Reviews

Spectacular movie of its time
I saw the movie once back in 1968 or so and thought it was great so i had to order a copy. The fact that the movie is in black and white still leaves a very visual impression of the stark, bare lives people like Winston Smith led. No color in their lives and certainly no color in their thoughts was the order of their day. I think the film captured that along with the idea that their technology available was also unenlightening. It served only one purpose and that was to control. I don't think I would be as impressed if the movie were made today. Our technology is too sophisticated. In the original version, less is more

Well worth having and owning if you are a 1984 afficianado
First to clarify: this is not the version of George Orwell's novel in which John Hurt and Richard Burton starred. This set contains two DVDs of much earlier productions of Orwell's famous story. There is a 1956 movie, and a 1954 British BBC TV drama. These are both worth seeing; just know what you are getting. The quality of the transfer is not particularly good on either disk--these productions are both black and white, and look like they were sitting in an archive somewhere for the past 60 years.

But both are worth the price of admission. Orwell had a brilliant and fearful vision of what our world might have been and might still become. Every educated person should read Orwell's book and understand its message. These films, imperfect as they are, are nonetheless quite good vehicles towards this end, and entertaining to boot.

Not bad, but it wasn't what I expected
1984 is a tough one to find, and the claim that this is a "remastered" edition is simply false. Video quality is in the tank, and the sound brings back nightmares of two tin cans and a length of string. My best assessment is that this is a VHS or beta dub onto DVD and the quality shows for that... If you're looking for a solid copy of this film, keep searching, my friends. I had to pay a bit extra to find a worthwhile of the actual film, but it was well worth the duckets...