pure early 70s

Rating: Null/10 (18 June 2003)

Many times movies dealing with the future have the best period feel since they show the way future was seen according to fashion and trend.
So obviously A.C.O. looks dated regarding the set decorations and clothes.
I also see why many a Kubrick movie is seen as boring or overlong today: for two reasons. 1) we live in the "zapping age" where our attention span is very small. 2) we see these movies on tv screens.
Kubrick shot his movies for huge screens where those typical fisheye shots look brilliant. On the large screen you will find many details and Kubrick gives us time to absorb the picture. Of course the timing is wrong for smaller screens.
This is a great picture. There's a lot of camp humor here. (actors are self aware and play their roles with a lot of irony and self-parody).
As usual Kubric's photography is impeccable. He manages to give us his trademark sense of "another dimension" or "altered state of mind" by using stark, yet somehow pale illumination and wide angle lenses.
Wonderful soundtrack including pioneering work on music synthesizers - great acting, great atmosphere and great depth.
The final message is clear: there's violence in (virtually) all of us humans - we have to deal with it.
One of the best Kubrick films.