X
- 1971
- X
- Warner Bros.
- 2 h 16 m
- 1971
- X
- Warner Bros.
- 2 h 16 m
Summary Kubrick makes of Anthony Burgess' celebrated novel a savage and satiric morality play centering on Alex (McDowell), who fights, robs, rapes and kills like any concsienceless predator. Captured and imprisoned, he undergoes treatment to condition him "safe", a "clockwork orange" healthy and whole on the outside - but crippled within by ref...
Directed By: Stanley Kubrick
Written By: Anthony Burgess, Stanley Kubrick
- 1971
- X
- Warner Bros.
- 2 h 16 m
- 1971
- X
- Warner Bros.
- 2 h 16 m
A Clockwork Orange
77
7.2
Where to Watch
Summary Kubrick makes of Anthony Burgess' celebrated novel a savage and satiric morality play centering on Alex (McDowell), who fights, robs, rapes and kills like any concsienceless predator. Captured and imprisoned, he undergoes treatment to condition him "safe", a "clockwork orange" healthy and whole on the outside - but crippled within by ref...
Directed By: Stanley Kubrick
Written By: Anthony Burgess, Stanley Kubrick
Where to Watch
Top Cast
Metascore
Generally Favorable
Based on 22 Critic Reviews
77
86% Positive
19 Reviews
19 Reviews
5% Mixed
1 Review
1 Review
9% Negative
2 Reviews
2 Reviews
Metascore
Generally Favorable
Based on 22 Critic Reviews
77
86% Positive
19 Reviews
19 Reviews
5% Mixed
1 Review
1 Review
9% Negative
2 Reviews
2 Reviews
Ethical screed aside, what does A Clockwork Orange have to offer beyond its curiosity value and a crash course in humanism? Well, for a start there's Kubrick's dazzling visual style which, rather in the manner that Trainspotting did 25 years later, translates the substance of an "unfilmable" book into the language of cinema. And at the dramatic core of the film is a simply astonishing performance by Malcolm MacDowell as Alex. It also features an orgy sequence that would have had Von Stroheim laughing his jackboots off — you'll certainly never listen to the William Tell Overture in quite the same way again. And as for Singin' In The Rain...
Kubrick's contributions are his wit and his eye. The wit, too much at times, is as biting as in "Dr. Strangelove," and the production, while of another order, is as spectacular as in "2001." [11 Feb 1972]
User Score
Generally Favorable
Based on 1,039 User Ratings
7.2
75% Positive
778 Ratings
778 Ratings
5% Mixed
53 Ratings
53 Ratings
20% Negative
208 Ratings
208 Ratings
User Score
Generally Favorable
Based on 1,039 User Ratings
7.2
75% Positive
778 Ratings
778 Ratings
5% Mixed
53 Ratings
53 Ratings
20% Negative
208 Ratings
208 Ratings
Kubrick's direction is impeccable, blending surreal imagery with a sharp narrative that challenges viewers to question their own beliefs about morality and redemption. The use of "Nadsat," a fictional slang developed by Burgess, adds a unique layer to the storytelling, immersing the audience in the dystopian world of the film.Malcolm McDowell's portrayal of Alex DeLarge is nothing short of iconic. He brings a chilling yet charismatic presence to the screen, capturing the complexity of a character who is at once repulsive and fascinating. The supporting cast complements McDowell's performance, creating a disturbingly believable dystopian society.
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As far as I am concerned, A Clockwork Orange is one of the greatest films ever made. With this 'work of art', Stanley Kubrick elevated cinema to the level of Michelangelo's art.
At the boundary between pornography and art, it is the so-called 'sexual depiction' that hinders or complicates the evaluation of a film.
In this respect, A Clockwork Orange, unlike The Realm of the Senses, does not appear at first glance to be significantly sexually explicit.
However, despite being a hypersexual and incendiary coalition of images, the film itself appears elegant, thanks to the perfection of the script, make-up, Beethoven's music, interiors and furnishings, futuristic furniture and production design. And it is sculpted to perfection by the technique and imagination of the entire film crew. This is also due to the zoom-outs and extreme filming techniques.
A Clockwork Orange is both pornographic and artistic, but never vulgar.
Nevertheless, the film seems grossly underrated when compared to the work of Charles Chaplin and Jean-Luc Godard.
Furthermore, despite the fact that a film is not a masterpiece without great performances from its performers, the film has few 'soul-stirring' or 'sentimental performers'.
This is Kubrick's perfect self-defence, creating the stereotype that 'films are for directors'.
Sighingly vivid, beautiful, sometimes violent, sometimes maddening, this 136-minute film feels like stepping into an avant-garde photographic exhibition.
It is a visual testament to Kubrick's excellent photographic sense. Every scene, every still is a collection of A-list photographs. There is no other film like it.
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A chilling classic, the movie is a scabrous satire about human deviance, brutality, and social conditioning that has remained a visible part of the ongoing public debate about violence and the movies.
His film may offend (it very nearly makes one nauseous) but there is no doubting the fact that it is the end product of a brilliant, highly original mind.
An engrossing, influential movie, which screams to be watched on the big screen. Few films will provoke your thoughts so fiercely.
A sexless, inhuman film, whose power derives from a ruthless subordination of its content to the demands of telling a good story. A glossy, action-packed ritual which is fun to watch but superficial to think about.
A very bad film--snide, barely competent, and overdrawn--that enjoys a perennial popularity, perhaps because its confused moral position appeals to the secret Nietzscheans within us.
My god, very delightful movie. Definitely watch it with your family.---------------------------------------------
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[SPOILER ALERT: This review contains spoilers.]
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[SPOILER ALERT: This review contains spoilers.]
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I was really on the wrong side of this film. But I've given A Clockwork Orange more than a fair chance. To me, it just doesn't work - not just narratively, it doesn't even work thematically. It's essentially meant to be this very ambitious and intimate character study that reflects the flaws in the society and the present thinking etc etc. But the problem is, Kubrick never breaks into the psychology of the central character through the course of the film. He did so brilliantly in Eyes Wide Shut but here, I felt like a distant observer. I hated Alex from start to finish and I don't think it was meant to be that way. Even in Raging Bull, a film with the most despicable central character imaginable, eventually drew sympathy. That's because we got to know why LaMotta did what he did and it's done so powerfully. His penchant for self-destruction was just an exaggerated version of what everyone goes through - hurt oneself for causing pain to others. A Clockwork Orange doesn't even aim at the sort of depth.
But film does develop some ideas through the first 2 Acts but at the very end, it throws it all out of the window. Ambiguous endings work very beautifully with films like 2001 but here it felt like Kubrick himself couldn't make up his mind about the social norms. So then why make an entire movie about it?
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Production Company
Warner Bros.,
Polaris Productions,
Hawk Films,
Max L. Raab Productions,
Si Litvinoff Film Production
Release Date Dec 20, 1971
Duration 2 h 16 m
Rating X
Tagline Being the adventures of a young man ... who couldn't resist pretty girls ... or a bit of the old ultra-violence ... went to jail, was re-conditioned ... and came out a different young man ... or was he ?
Awards
Academy Awards, USA
• 4 Nominations
Golden Globes, USA
• 3 Nominations
BAFTA Awards
• 7 Nominations
