Kubrick's "Black Square"

Rating: 1/10 (20 May 2001)

I normally keep my movie thoughts to myself but this movie affected me to the point of voicing myself out.
Movies are typically evaluated via (i) more/less objective attributes (plot, ideas, action, cinematography, etc.) and (ii) emotional impressions they leave. While the latter is extremely personal and diverse, some convergence can be achieved in the former. Unfortunately, this piece greatly fails in it: no plot, no original ideas, no action, horrible cinematography, and a very repetitive soundtrack. As far as the emotional impression goes: well, in my case, it gave me a highly unpleasant aftertaste: a very pretentious schizophrenic nightmare...
Why is it so overrated then? I'd hypothesize that it is for the same reason as in the case of Malevich's "Black Square". When one sees something a piece of "art" of that type, there seem to be two typical reactions: (i) "There is nothing there, it is junk." and (ii) "There is nothing there but it must be great because everyone else thinks it's great. Then it must be an art." So what created this mob fame effect for this movie? I don't know for sure but it might have been the big names of S.Kubrick and A.Clark. Once such a "snowball" starts rolling down the hill and picks up the momentum, it is more difficult to stop it than to roll with it.
Please trust your own independent feelings. Things don't become better because a million of other people say they are brilliant. Cheers.