Peter Finch as Howard Beale in Network

Best Actor at the 49th Annual Oscars (1976)

Notable Quote:

“I’m mad as hell and I’m not gonna take it anymore!”

Synopsis:

If you haven’t seen family in a while and you’re missing the “kids these days” rants of your granddad, check out the Howard Beale Show!

The character:

Howard Beale undergoes a real transition throughout this movie. He starts out as a vaguely grumpy, good ol’ boy news anchor. When he’s informed that he’s going to be fired, he threatens, on air, to blow his brains out. The next day, he apologizes, but then goes on another tear on the air about being sick of the bullshit. It’s the kind of thing that would be a viral video these days: a guy who feels fucked over, and wants to make a statement on his way out. Umm, except then he hears a voice telling him to spread the truth to the people and claims to have been “imbued,” and it becomes clear that maybe he actually has a brain tumor.

What do we do when a cranky white man yells and swears? Call him a genius and give him a platform to express his views, of course! Howard is a sad figure in a lot of ways, because he’s completely used – Diana gets him his own show because it’ll bring in ratings, ignoring the fact that this man needs serious help. (Luckily reality tv would never take advantage of someone with a mental illness today :eyeroll:). The attention just causes him to devolve further and eventually, he’s in full fire-and-brimstone preacher mode, ranting and raving and legit fainting when he runs out of air. And like all famous nightmare humans, he eventually becomes a liability for the network, so whoops, they have to kill him.

My favorite thing about Howard is that nothing he says is actually that interesting or innovative. It’s the kind of stuff that freshman with a bong spout: ya know, stuff about how everyone is a sheeple, man. It’s all, “don’t believe the television, only trust yourself, etc.” It’s actually relevant today: Howard Beale would definitely have a controversial Twitter account for a while before getting himself banned. Most notably, he’s cultivating people’s anger and outrage, but doesn’t channel it in any useful way: and when he actually exposes a shady business deal that the network is involved in, he’s redirected into ranting about something else.

The performance:

Peter Finch is notably one of only two posthumous recipients of acting Oscars, a sad distinction to hold. Happily, it wasn’t a sympathy vote: he gives a great performance. The Academy loves an actor playing crazy, and Finch accesses a high level of unhinged. He has to blow his vocal chords shouting, he has to embark on long tirades without taking a breath, and he has to contort his face into all kinds of terrible expressions. It’s impressive and convincing.

My issue with the performance isn’t Finch’s fault, but I like when an actor gets to interact with other people, and Howard Beale is pretty isolated. Most of the time, he’s delivering monologues, rather than reacting to what’s going on around him. Howard also loses a lot of his humanity, so we don’t get to see much of Finch playing an actual person, although I appreciate his report with Max Holden early in the movie, before his loses his damn mind. Also, I always quibble with accents, and it’s pretty clear that he’s an Australian playing an American, so five points from Gryffindor for that.

The movie:

I’ve already discussed my general Network feelings but luckily, it’s a movie that invites scads of analysis. First, I wanna talk about William Holden, who gives a commanding performance as Max. He does a great job as a guy who is kind of an old school scumbag, but still has a moral compass. The scathing monologue he lays on Diana as he dumps her is an incredible bit of acting; he lays out so many home truths effortless, but not without sympathy.

Let me also say, since this is the Howard write-up: I almost completely lose the plot when he gets smacked down by Arthur Jensen, and then completely changes his tune … somehow? I’m not really clear what he was saying before, and I don’t know what he’s saying after, or why. I’ve read summaries, but alas, not getting it.

Was the Oscar deserved?

This is a tough one, especially given that Peter Finch was up against William Holden, and also De Niro in Taxi Driver. Ultimately, I would have given it to one of those guys, but I still think it’s deserved.