1984’s Influence in Films

George Orwell’s 1984 is definitely one of the most transcendental novels of the 20^th century.  There are many ways of seeing this novel, some think it was a sort f prophecy, others believe it was a warning, but maybe, it was simply his reaction to the events he had lived, as he mentioned in his essay Why I write “Every line of serious work that I have written since 1936 has been written, directly or indirectly, against totalitarianism and for democratic Socialism, as I understand it.” (Orwell 4)

This novel has been an influence for many other novels, comics, and films. This time, I want to make a comparison of the novel with the movie Equilibrium.

For those of you who have not watched the movie, here are the main facts you need to know, no spoilers. Equilibrium is a science fiction film directed by Kurt Wimmer. It was released in 2002, starring Christian Bale, Emily Watson and Taye Diggs. The story is set in the near future (2072) after World War III in the country of Libria. This nation is ruled by the Tetragrammaton Council, lead by “Father,” they administrate Prozium, a drug that suppresses feelings, to the entire population and also manipulate them with propaganda, claiming that war and violence can be avoided only by numbing feelings, along with eliminating art and literature.

This film has several aspects that resemble George Orwell’s 1984. In a wider view, the first thing I noticed, and that is pretty obvious, is that a totalitarian dystopian society is clearly portrayed in this film. You can tell only by noticing the oppression of the people as the government takes measures to eradicate their feelings, in addition to art and literature, elements that represent individuality. Moreover, the director of the movie made Libria as a cold, plain, and colorless country, just as Oceania is in Orwell’s novel, however, the director placed some elements that represent nature’s beauty to create some contrast, such as a puppy, the sunset and Beethoven’s music. In both 1984 and Equilibrium, the leaders of the government, “Big Brother” and ”Father” respectively, who pretty much have the same role, are shoved down people’s throats through images.

Taking a look to the protagonists of both, the novel and the film, they share a similar position regarding their jobs. On the one hand, Winston (1984) works in the Ministry of Truth; on the other hand, Preston (Equilibrium) is an officer, a Cleric. Even though both jobs are not that similar as of what they do, they both are working for the government. In addition, they both realize at some point that how they live is not right and they want to fight against the system, Winston by wanting to be a part of “The Rebellion”, and Preston, of “The Resistance.”

As a contrast of these two works, in Equilibrium there are some things that have been achieved, unlike in 1984, for example, in the second one, a goal of the Party is to eliminate the orgasm, which has clearly been achieved in Equilibrium.

“We shall abolish the orgasm. Our neurologists are at work upon it now. There will be no loyalty, except loyalty towards the Party. There will be no love, except the love of Big Brother. There will be no laughter, except the laugh of triumph over a defeated enemy. There will be no art, no literature, no science. When we are omnipotent we shall have no more need of science. There will be no distinction between beauty and ugliness. There will be no curiosity, no enjoyment of the process of life. All competing pleasures will be destroyed. But always -- do not forget this, Winston -- always there will be the intoxication of power, constantly increasing and constantly growing subtler. Always, at every moment, there will be the thrill of victory, the sensation of trampling on an enemy who is helpless. If you want a picture of the future, imagine a boot stamping on a human face -- for ever.'” (Orwell 337)

The fact that, thanks to Prozium, all sensation has been chemically suppressed, fulfills what is looked for in 1984.

"Libria, I congratulate you. At last peace reigns in the heart of man. At last war is but a word whose meaning fades from our understanding. At last, we are whole. Librians, there is a disease in the heart of man. Its symptom is hate. Its symptom is anger. Its symptom is rage. Its symptom is war. The disease is human emotion. But Libria, I congratulate you, for there is a cure for this disease. At the cost of the dizzying highs of human emotion, we have suppressed its abysmal lows. And you, as a society, have embraced this cure: Prozium. Now we are at peace with ourselves and human kind is one. War is gone. Hate, a memory. We are our own conscience now, and it is this conscience that guides us to rate EC-10, for emotional content, all those things that might tempt us to feel again, and destroy them. Librians, you have won against all odds and your own natures. You, have, survived" (Father, Equilibrium)

                All in all, the director of the film never claims to pay homage Orwell’s novel with the movie.

“Interviewer: Equilibrium is a film very much rooted in the long tradition of anti-authoritarian classics like 1984, Brave New World and Fahrenheit 451. Was your intention in writing Equilibrium to pay homage to those works, or did you have another purpose in mind?

Kurt Wimmer: Homage to the good ones. 1984 is an excellent and basically forgotten film to my mind. It blows me away. Fahrenheit 451, on the other hand - though I know some hold it as sacred - is not what I consider to be a very good film, all respect to Truffaut - however, it is a fantastic concept. With the exception of Judge Dredd, the dystopic utopia had never been done as an action film, and a film about the current trend in America to regulate what people can and cannot feel had not been done to my knowledge either, so I thought I'd give it a shot.” (Wimmer)

To sum up, in my opinion, and as I showed in this post, the film and the novel share many similar traits, and even though the movie is not one of the best ones out there, it is worth watching.

Have any of you watched the film already? What do you think? If not, I am certain there are other films out there that have been influenced by 1984, Eagle Eye, maybe? Have you watched any other movies that are somewhat similar to Orwell’s 1984?

References:

Equilibrium. Dir. Kurt Wimmer. Perf. Christian Bale, Emily Watson and Taye Diggs. 2002.

Green, Michelle Erica. "Equilibrium." n.d. The Green Man Review. 20 November 2014. <http://www.greenmanreview.com/film/film_equilibrium.html>.

Orwell, George. Nineteen eighty-four. Secker and Warburg, 1949.

Orwell, George. Why I write. 1947. 20 November 2014. <http://mendham.wmrhsd.org/faculty_files/lpelizzoni/georgeorwell--whyiwrite.pdf>.

Wimmer, Kurt. Interview: Kurt Wimmer (Writer/Director, Equilibrium). with John Snider. Web. http://www.scifidimensions.com/May03/kurtwimmer.htm. 3 May 2003.