Lord of the Flies (1963)

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Directed by Peter Brook.

Starring Tom Chapin, Hugh Edwards, Roger Elwin, Tom Gaman, James Aubrey.

Peter Brooks' big-screen adaptation of William Golding's classic Lord of the Flies adheres closely to the source material. After a plane accident, 30 school-age boys find themselves stranded on an island. The boys decide that the disciplined Ralph (James Aubrey) will be their leader. Jack (Tom Chapin) heads up a group who will hunt and butcher the local population of pigs for food. Also on the island is the mature, intelligent Piggy (Hugh Edwards). Eventually Ralph and Jack become the center of a war for leadership on the island. The story was filmed with less success in 1990. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide

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Reviews and discussions

Re:Weekly Theme for June 30: Po ...
by SkyPilot in Weekly Theme

liked it.

"My favorite post-apocalyptic movie is Doomsday, but I still have fond feelings for Waterworld, which is the first post-apocalyptic movie I ever saw. Has anyone mentioned Judge Dredd? I saw this on video after I saw Waterworld, and I was struck by these two very different visions of environmental catastrophe: tons of water, civilization nearly destroyed vs. almost no water, civilization totally urbanized. The Stand made a huge impression on me when I was in junior high. It came on either four nights in a row or four Sundays in a row, can't remember...but anyway, I remember after watching the first installment I was lying in bed, too frightened to go to sleep. I went downstairs to turn the VCR off, because it was taping the next horrifying installment, and I thought it would be able to get to sleep more easily if I stopped the taping. But The Stand had really gotten under my skin, because the next day I started up the second installment. Although I was scared out of my wits I kept h ... " [More]

Lord of the Flies (1963)
by JJ79 in JJ79 Blog

hasn't rated it.

Was this review helpful? [Be the first to tell us!]
"Released: August 13, 1963 (USA) Director: Peter Brook*****This story about a group of British lads marooned on an island with no adults reminds me of LOST, especially in that drama's first year. People learning to live together, create some sort of community with some semblance of rules...everything hinging on the hope of rescue. What separates these two pieces of entertainment is the lack of any structure in Lord of the Flies. These children, fleeing from a war, don't have the knowledge or simple common sense to conduct themselves appropriately. When Jack and Kate got hungry, they didn't want to put Sawyer on the fire. Here, most of the kids have little problem with degenerating into cannibalism. Another thing is striking: the way in which this movie is shot lends itself to near silence, if not total silence. Each scene comes together with expressions and action allowing the audience to literally turn the volume off and still understand the movie. It's rare a film does t ... " [More]

Re:Re:Re:Re:Behaviour & Censorship
by Dr_Gor in Violence on film

hasn't rated it.

"'Laws', Rizzo? That is not what seperates men from beasts. 'Laws' were created as more of a 'code-of-conduct' among very primative people eons ago so they could live together without butchering each other. MANY so called 'animals' adhere to the same, or a very similar, 'code-of-conduct'. Wolves for example or lions or seals or dolphins or prairie-dogs... they all have one thing in common, they must work together in order to survive. Their so called 'laws' enable them to do this.... We are no different. I guess the big difference is that we are a bit too smart for ourselves and we have WAY too many ludicrous 'laws' for our own good! Our prisons are overflowing because of all of these 'laws' and the world is really no better off for it... I would suggest that you watch Planet Of The Apes one more time and you might want to throw in The Lord Of The Flies and The Warriors as well... not to ment ... " [More]

Re:Re:Re:Behaviour & Censorship
by Risselada in Violence on film

hasn't rated it.

"If we are just animals then why do we have any laws! Other animals don't have laws. Then again they don't have any rights either. Although some animals do seem to have social structure. " [More]

The Original is the Best
by divinemsjunebug in divinemsjunebug Blog

liked it.

Was this review helpful? [Be the first to tell us!]
"This was an excellent movie but the subject matter was a little disturbing for me. It shows how easy it is for the savage animal to take over inside of "man" no matter what age. I loved Piggy and it just broke my heart what happened to him. Anyway, it's a great movie but it will be a while before I watch it again because it was so sad for me. " [More]

"Oh Piggy"
by patches in Litter Box blog

loved it.

Was this review helpful? [Be the first to tell us!]
"The character of the chubby kid, "Piggy" still comes to mind when I think of any situation when there's a loner in a group. Piggy has asthma, glasses, he's overweight... but, by far the most entertaining character in this film. I love his story of the town where he grew up "The true story of Camberley". He tells it to the little ones of the group of boys on the island, when everyone else is off hunting and gathering, figting and acting like animals. I love Piggy, and may he rest in peace. " [More]

Review by All Movie Guide

All Movie Guide

liked it.

Director Peter Brooks' depiction of William Golding's novel is appropriately dark and dreary; he is able to attain the perfect balance of innocence and hedonism needed to bring this adventure/morality tale to life. The children are played primarily by non-actors, giving the film a much-needed natural feel. Some might view the lack of budget and amateurish acting as a flaw, but when compared to Harry Hook's more polished, higher-budgeted 1990 adaptation, it is clear Brooks' version is truer to the source material. The images Brooks puts forth in his film are as shocking and startling as they were in the novel, in part due to the naiveté of the actors. Piggy's Hugh Edwards physical appearance is just as Golding described him, as is Ralph James Aubry. Creating an accurate film adaptation of a well received novel is no easy task, but Brooks has done a wonderful job of visualizing this classic novel. ~ Laura Abraham, All Movie Guide

Tags: highschool-English-class , criterion , boy , postnuclearholocaust , innocence
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