A Clockwork Orange My take on the theme

Rating: 1/10 (31 October 2010)

A Clockwork Orange (1971) by Stanley Kubrick, is one of the most disturbing movies that I have ever had the displeasure of watching. The film follows Alex, played by Malcolm McDowell, and his group of delinquent friends whom he calls droogs. The droogs include Pete (Michael Tarn), Georgie (James Marcus), and Dim (Warren Clarke). Alex and the droogs spend their nights terrorizing whomever they may encounter using rape, violence, and sadistic theatrics.
The film is narrated in a voice over fashion by Alex, as he recalls the story, and gives it to us from his point of view. Alex leads us through his violent escapades with his droogs, where they beat up a homeless man, fight a rival gang, beat up a writer and rape his wife, and break into a home of a woman and her cats where Alex beats the woman to death with a penis shaped statue. As Alex tries to escape the house his droogs turn on him, smashing a milk bottle in his face leaving him blinded to be found by the police.
Alex is convicted of murder and sentenced to 14 years in prison. While in prison Alex hears of a experimental therapy that could get him out of prison much quicker than the 14 years he is sentenced, naturally he signs up without really knowing what the therapy is. The experimental aversion therapy that Alex is subjected to includes being strapped in a straight jacket and being forced to watch films containing extreme violence while being given drugs to induce revulsion. During all the violent images the only sound is Beethoven's Ninth Symphony, one of Alex's favorite pieces.
The results of the aversion therapy are successful and Alex is immediately released from prison "cured" of his illness. Now when ever faced with violence or Beethoven's ninth Alex's response is to be incapacitated by revulsion. The film then leads us threw the trauma that Alex goes through at the hands of the old man that he had previously attacked, the two police officers that were his former droogs, and the writer that he had beaten and raped his wife. The film ends with Alex in the hospital as they try to successfully reverse the aversion therapy.
The successful use of jump cuts makes this film, which is incredibly long coming in at 137 minutes, makes the film bearable and seems shorter than it actually is.
To me if I had to pick a theme out for this movie, it would be one of morality. The theme focuses in on the bad things that Alex does and calls into question how far we should go to correct the bad things that people do. Another film that I believe has a theme that is connected to morality is Crash, this film focuses in on the morality of actions and the effects that can be seen later down the line.