2nd most poetic and artistic

Rating: 10/10 (14 July 2000)

Aside from Alfred Hitchcock's "Vertigo", A Clockwork Orange is probably the most poetic and artistic movie ever made. From it's haunting and downright frightening first shot of Alex's face (with his perfectly constructed wardrobe and one fake eyelash, an idea nothing short of genius), to the dialogue (consisting mainly of Nasdat, a language similar to english though certain terms are used in replacement of our terms. Example: Good=Horrorshow, In-Out, In-Out=Sex), to the ultra-modern houses that Alex and his droogs raid, to the ironic and disturbing idea of having Alex sing "Singing In The Rain" while shamelessly raping a middle-aged woman, to the fish eye lens shots Kubrick uses to capture imagery, to the contraption that forces Alex to watch the ludivico video, and finally to the overall question of the entire movie: What is it better for a man to be--naturally evil or mechanically enforced good? Alex has a chance to experience them both.
Now to the plot: Alex (Malcolm McDowell)is a disturbed youth who spends his days faking sick from school so he and his droogs (friends) can drink milk-plus at a bar or go out for "a little of the ultra-violence" It is kind of like a gang of theirs, which Alex leads, consisting of 4 members. They wear the same costumes, fight other gangs, beat up homeless drunks, rape innocent women and sometimes kill them, and try to run cars off the road. Alex is obsessed with Beethoven, who he refers to as "Ludwig Van". He associates Beethoven with sexual violence. After he angers his droogs and puts down a potential mutiny through (what else?) violence, they decide to double cross him by knocking him out after he kills a woman, leaving him for the police. He hates it in prison, but he manages to humour the religious head there by pretending to be interested in the bible (all he really cares about in the bible are the sexual and violent parts, which he imagines himself in). Through gaining the religious head's favor, he is allowed to get off early for his crimes, on one condition--he undergoes the "Ludovico Treatment": a treatment supposed to cure the need for violence. The treatment consists of holding Alex in a chair, putting him in a straitjacket, forcing his eyelids to stay open by putting hooks under his eyes, keeping his head stationary, and thereby forcing him to watch the video that they display: A video of sexual violence with a soundtrack of bastardized Beethoven music. Alex is absolutely shellshocked at the sights and sounds of this video. After he watches it, you see him on a stage crouching down. A topless woman walks onto the stage. He reaches for her breasts. Before his hands can get there, he crumples over and starts gagging. Whenever Alex now thinks a violent thought, he becomes unbearably sick. Then he goes back into the everyday world, where the tables are turned on him in almost every way.... Malcolm McDowell's performance perhaps ranks among the 10 best ever given. His brave portrayal of an absolutely monstrous teen is so frighteningly believable that the mere sight of him is scary. The music is appropriately moody, as it is in all Kubrick movies. The art direction is flawless, as is the cinematography. This is the most Kubrickesque of all his films, and probably his best overall. The surreal atmosphere is disturbingly relevant, though perhaps not at first glance. This movie deserved oscars for best picture, best actor, best director, best adapted screenplay, best cinematography, best art direction, best costume design, and best sound. IT GOT NONE OF THEM!!! It was nominated for best picture, best director, best adapted screenplay, and best editing. What did it lose to in all 4 categories? THE FRENCH CONNECTION!!! The two movies are completely incomparable--The French Connection seems so shallow compared to A Clockwork Orange. It's losing to The French Connection ranks among the top 5 mishaps of the oscars: the other 4 being Citizen Kane losing to How Green Was My Valley, an unnominated Vertigo losing to GIGI?!?!, Goodfellas losing to Dances With Wolves, and Pulp Fiction losing to Forrest Gump (Honorable mention goes to an unnominated Usual Suspects losing to the poorly acted Braveheart). In retrospect, one wonders how any of them could've happened, but they did. Somehow. See A Clockwork Orange. And if you're one who says it is nothing but "sexual, ugly rubbish," you probably (not definitely) should be forced to be placed in a contraption not unlike the one Alex was forced into, and be forced to watch the movie over and over until you realize the true wonder of cinema that it is.