Following a plane crash a group of schoolboys find themselves on a deserted island. They appoint a leader and attempt to create an organised society for the sake of their survival. Democracy and order soon begin to crumble when a breakaway faction forms and quickly regresses to brutal savagery with horrifying consequences.

Peter Brook's classic adaptation of William Golding's novel has lost none of the impact it made when given an 'X' certificate on its 1963 release. Shot with a raw style, the film has a chilling air of realism and still retains the power to shock.