Lord of the Flies

1963

1h 31m

Drama

Adventure

Mystery & Thriller

List

92%

Tomatometer

24 Reviews

63%

Audience Score

25,000+ Ratings

Amidst a nuclear war, a plane carrying a group of schoolboys crash lands on a deserted island. With no adult survivors, the boys are forced to fend for themselves. At first they cooperate, but when the they split into two separate camps -- one led by the pragmatic Ralph (James Aubrey) and the other by militaristic Jack (Tom Chapin) -- their society falls into disarray, leading to a disturbing examination of human nature and a chilling conclusion.

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Scott Tobias

The Dissolve

Brook's adaptation is an encroaching nightmare of innocence lost, following Golding's thesis about what happens when civilization breaks down and man's true nature is revealed.

Rated: 4.5/5

Jul 16, 2013

Full Review

Nell Minow

Common Sense Media

Book-based classic can be scary and troubling in places.

Rated: 5/5

Dec 25, 2010

Full Review

Penelope Gilliatt

Observer (UK)

Peter Brook's film preserves the book's character with a fastidiousness that strikes me as very remarkable.

Mar 5, 2024

Full Review

Joe Lipsett

Hazel & Katniss & Harry & Starr Podcast

Ralph's jarring ADR aside, Brook's film has a discomforting authenticity thanks to its non-professional cast, on-location shooting and sumptuous black and white photography. Piggy and Simon's death are horrifying, though characters are all too shallow

Rated: 3.5/5

Dec 1, 2022

Full Review

MFB Critics

Monthly Film Bulletin

Too slow in the establishing shots and too flurried with action shots, the direction, like the tediously repetitive score, raises a barrier between us and the subject.

Jan 22, 2018

Full Review

Jennie Kermode

Eye for Film

For all that time has changed the way it fits into the world, Lord Of The Flies remains as important today as it was in 1963. The quality of the restored version is excellent. Don't wait too long to see it.

Rated: 4.5/5

Aug 31, 2017

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sim M

We live in a "civilized" world, but, when life is threatened, our primal survival instincts are activated, as amazingly illustrated in this film.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

03/03/24

Full Review

Joel H

Watching Lord of the Flies reminded me of how powerful this story really is. Even though some of the children are better actors than others, there is an innocence to their performances that makes it feel genuine. Having actual kids play the parts also made the bad things that happen even more horrific. Yet despite the amateur performances and the fact that you can tell that this film was shot on a minimal budget, the plot is strong enough to hold everything up. Reading the novel as a teen was an unforgettable experience for me, and this movie brought back a lot of memories and feelings of that time.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

02/12/24

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Kevin P

A very interesting character study and microism of humanity when "civilized" children are left to their own devices in a fight for survival.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

11/19/23

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Daniel S

This movie would be great if it only had a plot. The actors can't act and the first sequence is laughably terrible.

Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars

06/26/23

Full Review

Isaac C

This movie is not worth it if you value your time.

Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars

06/26/23

Full Review

michael g

(ANYONE HERE WITH LIP-READING EXPERTISE?) There's a moment at the very end of this film that was one of the most poignant and heartbreaking things I've ever seen on film. One of the youngest boys walks up to the Naval Officer who's there to rescue them, touches him and mouths, "Help. Help. Help.", over and over again, without speaking. Curiously Wikipedia describes this moment thusly: "One of the youngest boys tries to tell the officer his name, but cannot remember it." I think Wikipedia is wrong. I wonder if anyone here agrees with me. (I took another look after reading Wikipedia's description, and did not change my mind.)

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

03/31/23

Full Review

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Peter Brook

Director

James Aubrey

Ralph

Tom Chapin

Jack

Hugh Edwards

Piggy

Roger Elwin

Roger

Tom Gaman

Simon

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57%

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Lord of the Flies

62%

70%

The Edge

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43%

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Synopsis

Amidst a nuclear war, a plane carrying a group of schoolboys crash lands on a deserted island. With no adult survivors, the boys are forced to fend for themselves. At first they cooperate, but when the they split into two separate camps -- one led by the pragmatic Ralph (James Aubrey) and the other by militaristic Jack (Tom Chapin) -- their society falls into disarray, leading to a disturbing examination of human nature and a chilling conclusion.

Director: Peter Brook
Producer: Al Hine
Screenwriter: William Golding
Production Co: Two Arts Ltd.
Genre: Drama, Adventure, Mystery & Thriller
Original Language: English
Release Date (Streaming): Mar 11, 2017
Runtime: 1h 31m

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