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Orwell: 2+2=5

Play trailer 1:57 Poster for Orwell: 2+2=5 1h 59m Biography Documentary History Play Trailer Watchlist
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79% Tomatometer 19 Reviews Popcornmeter 0 Verified Ratings
From Academy Award®-nominated and BAFTA-winning director, Raoul Peck (I Am Not Your Negro), Orwell is the definitive feature-length documentary on visionary author George Orwell, with the exclusive cooperation of the Orwell Estate. ‍"Who controls the past controls the future: who controls the present controls the past...," wrote Orwell in his novel, 1984. Today, the "newspeak" of authoritarian rule is alive and well and in unexpected places, from the rise of AI Chatbot to the Russian propaganda machine, from the marketing webs of commercial metaverses to the political banning of books in the Southern United States. Peck's "Orwell" will use George Orwell's life, work and legacy as a maverick iconoclastic writer to jam the signals of the algorithms gone rogue which, in the name of personal freedom, threaten to close our minds to a greater possibility.

Cast & Crew

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Raoul Peck

Director

Alex Gibney

Producer

Blair Foster

Producer

Tamara Rosenberg

Producer

Nick Shumaker

Producer

Critics Reviews

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Sam Adams Slate It’s dazzling and terrifying, a guide to a political movement that has been gathering steam for decades and shows no signs of letting up. Aug 6, 2025 Full Review Steve Pond TheWrap Orwell: 2+2=5 is an artful balancing act, one that dips in and out of Orwell’s life and work, but also uses a broad array of reference points as it swings from history to art to the most current of events. Aug 6, 2025 Full Review Robert Daniels RogerEbert.com “Orwell 2+2 = 5” is a frightening vision of life imitating art. But the director struggles to focus on specific themes, overloading the film by making as many links as possible. May 21, 2025 Full Review Pat Mullen POV Magazine It’s as subtle as a billboard whacked to the face, but maybe that’s the tactic that audiences need nowadays. Sep 5, 2025 Full Review Andrew Parker The Gate While close reading of Orwell is commonplace within sociological and literary circles, Peck’s film applies such analysis and places it within the modern context of a world that slouches continually towards the march of totalitarianism. Rated: 6/10 Sep 5, 2025 Full Review KT Mahe For Your Reference Podcast The teachings of Orwell take a more tragic poetic turn for audiences as his historical views prove to still be challenging for well-meaning people today. Rated: 4/5 Aug 1, 2025 Full Review Read all reviews
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Orwell: 2+2=5

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Orwell: 2+2=5

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Movie Info

Synopsis From Academy Award®-nominated and BAFTA-winning director, Raoul Peck (I Am Not Your Negro), Orwell is the definitive feature-length documentary on visionary author George Orwell, with the exclusive cooperation of the Orwell Estate. ‍"Who controls the past controls the future: who controls the present controls the past...," wrote Orwell in his novel, 1984. Today, the "newspeak" of authoritarian rule is alive and well and in unexpected places, from the rise of AI Chatbot to the Russian propaganda machine, from the marketing webs of commercial metaverses to the political banning of books in the Southern United States. Peck's "Orwell" will use George Orwell's life, work and legacy as a maverick iconoclastic writer to jam the signals of the algorithms gone rogue which, in the name of personal freedom, threaten to close our minds to a greater possibility.
Director
Raoul Peck
Producer
Alex Gibney, Blair Foster, Tamara Rosenberg, Nick Shumaker
Distributor
NEON
Production Co
Closer Media, Anonymous Content, Jigsaw Productions
Genre
Biography, Documentary, History
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Oct 3, 2025, Limited
Runtime
1h 59m