The Killing Fields (film)

The Killing Fields
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Roland Joffé
Screenplay by	Bruce Robinson
Based on	The Death and Life of Dith Pran by Sydney Schanberg
Produced by	David Puttnam Iain Smith
Starring	Sam Waterston Haing S. Ngor Craig T. Nelson John Malkovich Athol Fugard
Cinematography	Chris Menges
Edited by	Jim Clark
Music by	Mike Oldfield
Production companies	Goldcrest Films International Film Investors Enigma Productions
Distributed by	Columbia-EMI-Warner Distributors
Release date	2 November 1984 (1984-11-02)
Running time	141 minutes
Country	United Kingdom
Languages	English French Khmer
Budget	$14.4 million[1]
Box office	$34.7 million[2]

The Killing Fields is a 1984 British biographical drama film about the Khmer Rouge regime in Cambodia, which is based on the experiences of two journalists: Cambodian Dith Pran and American Sydney Schanberg. It was directed by Roland Joffé and produced by David Puttnam for his company Goldcrest Films. Sam Waterston stars as Schanberg, Haing S. Ngor as Pran, and John Malkovich as Al Rockoff. The adaptation for the screen was written by Bruce Robinson; the musical score was written by Mike Oldfield and orchestrated by David Bedford.

The film was a success at the box office and an instant hit with critics. At the 57th Academy Awards it received seven Oscar nominations, including Best Picture; it won three, most notably Best Supporting Actor for Haing S. Ngor, who had no previous acting experience, as well as Best Cinematography and Best Editing. At the 38th British Academy Film Awards, it won eight BAFTAs, including Best Film and Best Actor in a Leading Role for Ngor.

In 1999, the British Film Institute voted The Killing Fields the 100th greatest British film of the 20th century. In 2016, British film magazine Empire ranked it number 86 in their list of the 100 best British films.^[3]