GREAT CINEMAMASTER LIST
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Search 713 spoiler-free recommendations from 1916 to 2026. Filter by the night you want—not the list you’re supposed to finish.

Direct film viewShowing master rank #81 on its own—not above the ranking.
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Artwork
DirectorAll directors

Most represented · 6+ films

More recurring directors · 3–5 films54
All directors · surname A–Z438
ActorAll actors

Most represented actors

Big Three membership
Major award winners

1 selected film

Master Rank balances Greatness, Engagement, and Ease. Sort by Greatness for the artistic-canon view.

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Original poster artwork · Great Cinema Master List

Spoiler-free premise

A TV network cynically exploits a deranged ex-TV anchor's ravings and revelations about the media for their own profit.

Read expanded premiseLonger, still spoiler-free

After veteran news anchor Howard Beale announces on air that he intends to kill himself, executives discover his furious broadcasts are raising ratings. Programmer Diana Christensen turns his breakdown into scheduled entertainment while corporate pressures intensify.

Why it belongs

In Network, Lumet and Chayefsky turn television into a furious machine of ratings, spectacle, corporate control, and incandescent performance.

Read expanded why it belongsThe fuller editorial case

Lumet and Chayefsky stage television through multi-camera blocking, control rooms, boardrooms, studio audiences, ratings charts, and incandescent monologues edited for escalating tempo, with Peter Finch, Faye Dunaway, William Holden, and Beatrice Straight embodying competing forms of belief and compromise.

Major award record

Metadata only · zero points in 40/40/20
Academy Awards4 wins1977 · official ceremony record ↗
Actor in a Leading Role1977 · Peter Finchofficial ceremony record ↗Actress in a Leading Role1977 · Faye Dunawayofficial ceremony record ↗Writing (Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen—based on factual material or on story material not previously published or produced)1977 · Paddy Chayefskyofficial ceremony record ↗Actress in a Supporting Role1977 · Beatrice Straightofficial ceremony record ↗
Golden Globes4 wins1977 · official film record ↗
Best Director - Motion Picture1977 · Sidney Lumetofficial film record ↗Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture - Drama1977 · Peter Finchofficial film record ↗Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture - Drama1977 · Faye Dunawayofficial film record ↗Best Screenplay - Motion Picture1977 · Paddy Chayefskyofficial film record ↗
BAFTA1 win1978 · official BAFTA 1978 Film Awards results ↗
Best Actor1978 · Peter Finch (posthumous)official BAFTA 1978 Film Awards results ↗

Totals include every recorded competitive win. Only Picture or top-film honors, Direction, Screenplay, and lead or supporting performances are named.

Good for
Date NightFilm Club
Descriptive guidance derived from rating, genre, runtime, mood, and GCML scores.

Institutional reference ranks

Sight & Sound—IMDb Top 250—AFI 10064
Reference metadata only · not part of the 40/40/20 score

Great Cinema Master List scores

Greatness9.3
Engagement9.3
Ease8.9

English · R
Narrative Feature
Mood: Gripping