Lord of the Flies

by Ryan

4/4 banana peels

Lord of the Flies is a film adaption of William Golding's novel of the same name and directed by Peter Brook. The story follows a group of English school boys who are stranded on an island in the middle of no where. Kind of sounds like Lost? The boys time on the island begins civilized, but soon the constructs of society are stripped away to only leave the innate animal nature of humans. At least I think that's what William Golding was going for.

Anyways, the film has its hero and his antithesis, it has the lovable fat kid, and a bunch of wild kids. Whats amazing for this film is the sense of terror and pure savageness that is expressed through film. While not having anything materially offensive in the film, the original rating of this movie was X (in 1963 that is) just for the themes. The movie at times feels unrehearsed and in dissaray, which is probably due to the style of shooting. Much of the script was left open to interpretation and the director encouraged the kids to improvise and act out on their carnal natures. However, I feel this adds to the overall message of the film rather than detracting.

While this film is almost a literal interpretation of the novel it is based on, it does something that most films can't really do anymore. It makes care, its makes you feel, and it makes you connect. It's truly a gem and it's no surprise that the Criterion Collection has remastered and released this film.

If you venture to see Lord of the Flies, drop us a comment and let us know what you think.