1984 (1984) review

 This adaptation of George Orwell's seminal 1984 failed to chart on the top top 1000 films of all time.

It tells the story of midlevel bureaucrat Winston Smith (John Hurt) who is living in a dystopian land ruled by the totalitarian government called Big Brother. Wanting to escape the tyrannical regime, he begins a relationship with a woman called Julia (Suzanna Hamilton) as they both join a resistance movement led by the mysterious O'Brien (Richard Burton.)

Considering 1984's impact on popular culture, I am surprised it doesn't feature on the top 1000 films of all time. Words like doublespeak, Orwellian and Big Brother have all since entered the cultural lexicon. In 1984, when Orwell originally penned 1984, you would have been called a tin-foil conspiracy theorist for claiming the government is spying on is. Now it's conspiracy fact. Not fiction.

Even Orwell himself has become a cultural icon - something he would have hated by the way. I don't think that 1984 would have been out of place on IMDB's top 1000 film list. It would be among good company, as similar dystopic films like Brazil or V for Vendetta also feature.

And 1984 is just a good if incredibly bleak film. John Hurt brings our hero Winston Smith to life with a world-worn cynicism that soon becomes an unlikely bravery, as he quietly looks for ways to undermine the oppressive regime that he is working for.

The whole film has a dirty, grimy, feel as we see a population going through the motions. This isn't a world where if you scratch below the idyllic service, you'll see the seedy underworld: in 1984, the people know they're living a miserable existence, they just don't care. They're thriving in apathy and indifference.

Just like Winston is until he begins an illicit relationship with Julia who was just as good as her co-star, but the true star was Hollywood heavy hitter Richard Burton. He was great as the villainous O'Brien. On the surface, he seems to be part of the resistance movement, luring in Winston and Julia, but he was just a trap to flush out traitors.

From here, the film rushes toward a conclusion that was too fast for my living. We definitely could have spent more time with Julia and Winston's relationship, before it inevitably self-destructs. For that reason, I wouldn't have ranked it highly on the top 1000 films, but I would rank it nonetheless.