A double-bill of big-screen dystopian drama is brought together on Worlds Gone Wild, a blu-ray release that combines stories of imagined societal dysfunction from both sides of the Atlantic. There’s no question of the power of their literary source material but, in terms of cinematic quality, the two are an uneven match.
Michael Radford’s big-screen adaptation of George Orwell’s 1949 novel 1984 (released in 1984) has never secured the reputation it deserves as a powerful, chilling and richly atmospheric reworking of Orwell’s seminal treatise on authoritarianism and tyranny. His evocation of the ways in which all-pervasive power crushes the human spirit – a companion piece to the condemnation of Stalinism that Orwell presents in Animal Farm – still resonates today.
As the unprepossessing rebel Winston Smith, John Hurt gives one of the very best performances of his career. Suzanna Hamilton is a passionate Julia, while Richard Burton delivers an extraordinarily convincing turn as Smith’s mentor, interrogator and confessor O’Brien. The script and production design are both first-rate, and the finished movie is only marred by the inexplicable inclusion of the dreadful, insipid eighties’ synth-pop soundtrack by Eurythmics. Following the recent re-release of the Nigel Kneale-scripted 1954 version of Nineteen-Eighty-Four, the opportunity for a positive reappraisal of Radford’s often neglected cinematic vision of the novel is timely.
The current TV adaptation of Margaret Atwood’s examination of religious zealotry and the subjugation of women (which concluded its critically-acclaimed fourth season last summer), has relegated the questionable status of the 1990 film version of The Handmaid’s Tale still further. Conflicts over rewrites of Harold Pinter’s original screenplay, together with director Volker Schlöndorff’s insistence on excising context from the narrative, result in an unbalanced and confusing exploration of Atwood’s themes. Natasha Richardson makes for an enigmatic Offred, while Faye Dunaway presents Serena as steely and implacable. But the muted atmosphere of the piece, and the sketchy nature of the Gilead world-building, culminate in an unsatisfying film translation of the book.
Although these movies were produced within seven years of each other, and both are screen adaptations of classic anti-utopian literature, it’s not instantly apparent why they would be good candidates for a paired release. This single-disc package by the Australian label Umbrella Entertainment is devoid of any special features that might throw light on the question. Volume 2 will offer The Andromeda Strain (1971) and The Groundstar Conspiracy (1972) – an even odder coupling.
WORLDS GONE WILD Volume 1 is available to buy on Blu-Ray
