So the movie's flawed. So it leaves us with loose ends and questions. That finally doesn't bother me, because what it does accomplish is done so well, is seen so sharply, is presented so unforgivingly, that Network will outlive a lot of tidier movies.

Sidney Lumet’s direction is outstanding.

Whatever its flaws, Network is a picture that can stand on its own. And does.

Network can be faulted both for going too far and not far enough, but it's also something that very few commercial films are these days. It's alive. This, I suspect, is the Lumet drive. It's also the wit of performers like Mr. Finch, Mr. Holden, and Miss Dunaway.

It's a dark, dark comedy that ruthlessly skewers the news industry on a stake, then roasts it alive.