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There are a number of variations or appropriations to the movie “The Nineteen Eighty-Four” which are based on the same novel. The first film 1984 was first premiered in the U.S NBC in 1953 and then in December 1954. Later, the BBC adopted its own version which was screened differently from the original version. The screenplay adaptions were done in 1956 and in 1984 by Ralph Bettinson and William Templeton and Michael Radford respectively. There is a strong inter-media potential to adapt various films from a single novel. In this case, the 1984 has had a number of adaptations from Orwell’s original novel (Mišić, 2016). From a theoretical point of view, it is evident that Orwell’s novel has been adapted to various types of media which implies that an adaptation of the 1984 is not necessarily of the novel. Thus, it could be a pre-existing adaption whereby for example, the adaption by Ranford’s 1984 could be directly linked to the 1956 adaptation by Michael Anderson. However, the credit given by the adaptor to novel reveals the truth behind a specific screenplay. The concept of adaption remains unclear because even the response of the audience can influence the adaptation. Certain scenes may end up resembling each other hence creating a strong conviction that a particular screen was adapted from a novel. Stone (2017) contains well written information about George Orwell and the strategy applied in the 1984 film (1954) in relation to the Nazi War in Germany (Stone, 2017). Therefore, this source has its main themes pinned on the political occurrences in the Nazi War in Germany. In this source, the version of the Nineteen Eighty Four depicts that the novel had sections where it had predicted the Nazi War hence making the screenplay writer o adopt it (Wilding, 2008).
The time and characters used by different screenplay writers may differ. In addition, the message may alter to some extent although the themes remain closely related. In this case, the screenplay writers of the Nineteen Eighty Four films have changed the some of the characters as well as the actions that are undertaken (Dorosz, 2016). For example, the Perry who produced the 1984 film asserted they wanted to create a futuristic film which would be a satire in its own world. The adaption of films slightly changes the meaning of the original piece. The strength of the 1984 creates a stronger culture in the vison of individuals as depicted by Terry Gilliam’s Brazil. Therefore, it is evident that the different versions created from a novel differs in style of presentation, the characters, part of the plot and the twist of the major theme (Cartmell, 2012). The film director must ensure that there is enough created given to the novel as the main source of idea.
In addition, Dorasz’s (2016) is a source that explains the adaptation of the Nineteen Eighty Four novel by George Orwell. The information contained in the 1954 film and that contained in the 1956 films are slightly different despite being based on a similar novel. In this case, imagination plays a key role in ensuring that the screenplay writer relates what is produced and what is contained in the novel. In conclusion, the Nineteen Eighty Four is a novel produced as a cautionary tale (Dorosz, 2016). However, the adaptors in films have reversed the original theme where the audience experiences textual differences between the screenplays and the original text from the novel (Huber, 2015). There are various suppositions and ideological positions that are being taken by the different writers and film directors although the theme remains closely related to the script as contained in the novel (Bloom, 2009). There is a shift from the content to the form in which a film is presented particularly if the director wants to relate to postmodernism. Thus, the context of the Nineteen Eighty Four novel has been configured to suit the various films based on its plot.
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| Bibliographic Details of Sources used in this Section | Brief Evaluation of Source | Ideas from Source Relevant to Answer Essay Question (Own Words) | How the Ideas Strengthen the Argument? |
| Stone, J., 2017. George Orwell on politics and war. Review of International Studies, 43(2), pp.221-239. | The name of the site is Cambridge University Press and hence very reliable Published recently which means that it contains the latest information Has a number of linked references available in Google Scholar | `Well written information about George Orwell and the strategy applied in the 1984 film (1954) in relation to the Nazi War in Germany. This will support my essay topic as it aims at finding out how various versions of a movie based on a particular book are altered. | The information will be included in the essay while discussing the version of 1984 91954). Orwell’s novel has been adapted to various types of media which implies that an adaptation of the 1984 is not necessarily of the novel |
| Wilding, Michael. 2008. “Orwell’s 1984: Rewriting the Future.” Sydney Studies in English. (2), 38-63. | Retrieved from Google Scholar which means that the source is reliable and credible. Witten in the past one decade which means that there is a wealth of information. The source is academic as it is obtained from an academic site. | Explains about a future version of “1984) which is probably the one released in 1956. Focuses on how the plot can be twisted to change the setting and the main theme is maintained | This source will provide vital information about how a film can be manipulated to create two versions from one book. |
| Dorosz, B., 2016. Polish Review, 61(4). | Retrieved from JSTOR.ORG which is an academic site for journal articles Sites other resources within Published in the last one year and hence it contains up-to-date information | Explains the production policy of the initial film of 1954 Offers a detailed review of the movie. | This source will be important because it will give the differences between the 1954 and 1956 versions of the Nineteen eighty four film. |
| Mišić, T., 2016. The Question of Intimacy in the novels” Brave New World” by Aldous Huxley and” 1984″ by George Orwell (Doctoral dissertation, Josip Juraj Strossmayer University of Osijek. Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences.). | Retrieved from National and University Library in Zagreb. Brief and straight to the key point Contains updated information | Explores the theme of the film 1984 from a 1956 perspective | The source will be used to determine how a film can be reproduced using a different plot but similar idea. The concept of adaption remains unclear because even the response of the audience can influence the adaptation |
- Bloom, H. ed., 2009. George Orwell’s 1984. Infobase Publishing.
- Cartmell, Deborah. 2012. Ed. A Companion to Literature, Film, and Adaptation. West Sussex: Wiley Blackwell.
- Dorosz, B., 2016. George Orwell’s 1984. Polish Review, 61(4).
- Huber, P., 2015. Orwell’s revenge: The 1984 palimpsest. Simon and Schuster.
- Mišić, T., 2016. The Question of Intimacy in the novels” Brave New World” by Aldous Huxley and” 1984″ by George Orwell (Doctoral dissertation, Josip Juraj Strossmayer University of Osijek. Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences.). Retrieved from
- Stone, J., 2017. George Orwell on politics and war. Review of International Studies, 43(2), pp.221-239. Retrieved from
- Wilding, Michael. 2008. “Orwell’s 1984: Rewriting the Future.” Sydney Studies in English. (2), 38-63.Retrieved from Retrieved from