Brave New World (1980 film)
A 1980 TV adaptation of Huxley's dystopian novel.
Brave New World is an American television film first shown in 1980, adapted from Aldous Huxley's 1932 novel of the same name. Directed by Burt Brinckerhoff for Universal Television, it was broadcast on NBC on 7 March 1980 and later shown on the BBC that same year. The film presents a dystopian future where pregnancy is outlawed, citizens engage in loveless sex, and narcotics ensure happiness, with babies created in labs and predestined into five classes.
Quick Facts
- Genre
- Drama / Science fiction
- Writer
- Aldous Huxley / Robert E. Thompson / Doran William Cannon
- Director
- Burt Brinckerhoff
- Starring
- Keir Dullea / Marcia Strassman / Kristoffer Tabori / Bud Cort / Julie Cobb / Ron O'Neal
- Theme Music Composer
- Paul Chihara
- Country
- United States
- Language
- English
- Executive Producer
- Milton Sperling
- Producer
- Jacqueline Babbin
- Editor
- James T. Heckert
- Cinematography
- Harry L. Wolf
- Runtime
- 180 minutes
Facts from the source article.
Lore & Background
The plot follows Thomas 'Tom' Grambell, a supervisor of human hatcheries, and the resistance led by Bernard Marx and other rebels. Bernard and his girlfriend Lenina Crowne visit a primitive reservation holding 20th-century values, where they meet John (the Savage), who returns with them to civilization. John's presence upends conventional thinking; he is seen as a freak and gains celebrity, but his romantic feelings for Lenina are considered obscene. John's parents are from the advanced world, and he educated himself using banned works like Shakespeare. Realizing his sexual mores are antiquated, he requests a solitary posting at a lighthouse but cannot escape memories of Lenina.
Reader's Guide
The film features a cast including Kristoffer Tabori as John the Savage, Bud Cort as Bernard Marx, Keir Dullea as Thomas Grahmbell, and Marcia Strassman as Lenina Disney. Originally four hours long, it was cut to three hours before airing. Reception from TCM described it as ambitious but tedious, confusing, and ultimately unsuccessful. The film has no official DVD release, though a transfer from a recorded tape to DVD can be found. It remains a notable early television adaptation of Huxley's work, despite its mixed critical reception.
Did You Know?
- The film was originally 3 hours 20 minutes long but cut to 3 hours before televising.
- It was filmed in Universal City, California.
- The screen adaptation was written by Doran William Cannon.
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