34 Years Old and Still Going Strong

Rating: 9/10 (29 April 2005)

"A Clockwork Orange" never fails to polarize its audience. It seems that the viewer ship of this film either loves it or loathes it. Some (I among them) salivate over Kubrick's complete mastery of the film medium while others want to burn the film as morally dubious at best and repugnant at worst. The criticisms I hear most often leveled at the film concern the fact that Kubrick has us sympathizing with a young punk whose favorite pastime is violence (any kind, including beatings, rapes, bludgeonings and stabbings). I do agree that we sympathize with Alex, the film's main character, but I disagree that this is to the film's detriment. The movie, like the book on which it is based, is told essentially in first person. Alex narrates the film, and we never see an event occur that Alex himself is not present to witness. Even the mise-en-scene of the film (the distorted angles, stylized sets, use of slow and fast motion, etc.) lend the film a subjectivity and reminds the audience that it is seeing events unfold through a perspective other than its own.
I think anyone with a shred of humanity will sympathize with Alex; I think that's the movie's point. Alex treats others as if they are animals, and we are repelled by it. Then, when the state treats him as if he is just another animal, why should we not be just as repelled? In some ways, the questions this film poses can have practical applications to the ongoing debate over the death penalty. Does recoiling at the idea of putting someone to death mean that we condone the crimes he or she committed to have that sentence brought against them in the first place?
I want to save my last comment for Malcolm McDowell's unimprovable performance. I can't imagine anyone playing Alex better than he does. He's got the perfect blend of charm, charisma and menace that this character needs. His performance is comedic and scary at the same time. It's a shame that he didn't receive more recognition for this film when it was released.
Grade: A