Lord of the Flies
Lord of the Flies is a 1963 British film based on the classic novel by William Golding. This symbolic and cautionary tale about the fragility of civilization has been required reading in most high schools for several decades.
Synopsis
The story is about a group of English schoolboys between the ages of 7 to 11 who are stranded on a deserted tropical island with no adults to guide them. Over time most of them discard the rules and manners of their upbringing and degenerate into a savage horde.
The majority of the boys form a primitive, loin-cloth wearing tribe that creates its own mythology and rituals. A smaller group rejects the tribe and clings to the familiar habits of civilization.
The film, shot in black-and-white on a limited budget, retains the lyrical quality and much of the symbolism of the novel. It has the look of an art-house film, as well as a surprising amount of nudity for its time.
The spanking scene
The corporal punishment scene happens near the end, around the 1:12 mark. In their cave headquarters, the tribal chief has a naked boy severely beaten with a switch rod. Out of the four strokes, we see two hard impacts to the boy's backside, filmed from a side view. The chief and his cronies laugh sadistically, revealing the cruelty of children (and society) without rules. This may be the earliest example of a purely sadistic corporal punishment scene to appear in a mainstream film.
See also
ISBNs
- Educational Edition (Paperback) ISBN 0-571-05686-5
Links
Review Review Lord of the Flies on Internet Movie Database
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