This is a very patchy affair, mostly because of the extremely amateurish acting of the cast of children: three of the characters, Ralph, Jack and Simon, are decently portrayed and have good moments, but the rest of the 30+ boys are stilted and off, with long pauses between every sentence, as if they are all struggling terribly to recall their lines. The boy playing Piggy is by far the worst of all: his inexplicable casting in such a pivotal role is such a catastrophic misfire that the film had no hope of being salvaged even if all the other pieces - such as the lifeless pacing - had turned out right.
For all that, the film has some truly unforgettable, deeply haunting moments, especially towards the end, and is extremely brave in how unflinchingly it remains true to the spirit of such a bleak book, making it seem very out of step with almost any other British film from the same era. It seems likely to have had a large influence on Coppola's Apocalypse Now, some 15 or so years later, and also Oliver Stone's Platoon.
So it is an unusual experience, being at once a remarkable, timeless achievement AND an awkward, stumbling mess, and as such is very difficult to rate.
For all that, the film has some truly unforgettable, deeply haunting moments, especially towards the end, and is extremely brave in how unflinchingly it remains true to the spirit of such a bleak book, making it seem very out of step with almost any other British film from the same era. It seems likely to have had a large influence on Coppola's Apocalypse Now, some 15 or so years later, and also Oliver Stone's Platoon.
So it is an unusual experience, being at once a remarkable, timeless achievement AND an awkward, stumbling mess, and as such is very difficult to rate.