Netflix is no stranger to reviving decades-old classic texts. Just last year, the streamer released the latest adaptation of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, based on the over 200-year-old novel. Four years ago, Netflix achieved Oscar glory with their adaptation of All Quiet on the Western Front, based on the 98-year-old novel by Erich Maria Remarque. Even last week, Netflix made headlines with confirmation about their new adaptation of The Chronicles of Narnia, starting with the first book in the series’ chronology, 1955’s The Magician’s Nephew.
This week has seen Netflix tapping into yet another modern adaptation of a classic story, as the BBC-produced new adaptation of William Golding’s Lord of the Flies has found its way onto the streamer in the United States. Though the series made its premiere internationally earlier this year, Lord of the Flies has finally landed on Netflix, which means even more eyes are on it. As has become par for the course these days with many high-profile projects, the series has fans and critics divided on their assessment of the new adaptation, but this time it’s the critics who love it.
New Lord of the Flies Divides Fans and Critics
As of this writing, with 38 total reviews submitted, Lord of the Flies has an imperssive 95% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes, including a “Certified Fresh” distinction from the review aggregator. The reviews include at least three perfect scores as well, including a 10 out of 10 from FandomWire, and 5 out of 5 scores from The Daily Telegraph, The Daily Mail, and iNews UK. In short, the series is a major hit with critics.
“This Lord of the Flies is wholly its own thing, as audacious and yet devoted to its source material as any TV adaptation in recent memory,” writes The Hollywood Reporter. The Daily Beast called the series “a powerhouse that does justice to the enduring literary classic;” and RogerEbert.com says the series “pays close attention to smaller, equally rich details” in addition to its grandiose moments.
On the flipside, audiences aren’t as kind. Currently, Lord of the Flies has a mixed 57% Popcornmeter rating, measuring the reactions from audiences that have watched the show and offered their own thoughts. In truth, some of the negative remarks found from audience members are what one might expect from any modern version of a classic story, with comments being made by people who may not have even seen it at all, but have heard that the cast includes actors who are not white.
“Race-swapped, slop, propaganda,” wrote one user, with another adding, “Terrible woke trash…This pathetic monstrosity should never have been allowed.” Another added the helpful comment, “Really bad adaptation, can’t understand the positive reviews. This was awful.”
Some audience members, however, had pointed critiques that went beyond buzzwords. One wrote an extensive post about Lord of the Flies, rating it half a star out of 5 and writing: “I love the original book, but this is so slow-moving, with horrendous music. The camera angles seem designed to show what a clever person the director is, without adding to viewer enjoyment. Hated it.”
As has been the case for many high-profile projects of late, including the recent Michael Jackson movie and even The Super Mario Galaxy Movie, critics and “fans” will not always agree on something. That it would end up being a new adaptation of Lord of the Flies, however, is at least somewhat surprising.
