By Using Two Extremes, Kubrick Fails to State Anything About Humanity

Rating: 2/10 (21 July 2014)

Alex DeLarge is one of the most despicable characters ever portrayed in film. He steals, assaults, rapes, and kills without a second thought. He does not have psychotic charisma, nor does he have strong bonds with friends, family, or lovers. He's a true monster, with no positive human characteristics.
Which is a titanic flaw of the film. Alex DeLarge is not a human being. He is only a caricature, used to force a point. He is impossible to relate to, and isn't relevant to 99.99% of the population.
Yet we are to take him as some kind of tragic anti-hero? We are supposed to be terrified by his forced psychological conditioning? I don't buy it. Every scene in the film was evidence that Alex was not stable enough to be a productive member of society and would never change. If he wasn't mentally neutered, he would have only harmed more people until his untimely end. People may blather on how it robs Alex of his freedom of choice, how the government is even worse than Alex, but at the end of the day, they know which version they'd rather invite to dinner.
Honestly, this story could have been great if it allowed for some sense of moral ambiguity, some shreds of humanity to both the violent, rebellious Alex and the pathetic, shell-shocked Alex. It would make the government's actions far more questionable, and Alex's character far more dramatic. But as is, Alex reaps what he sows, but avoids true punishment through luck and politics.
The film wasn't lifelessly drab, so it keeps one more star. Stanley Kubrick knows where to point the camera, if nothing else. But its lack of realistic character makes any of its statements debunked before they reach the debate. Its the thinking man's exploitation film, and deserves as much respect.