Ouch! My Hurting Eyes

Rating: 4/10 (11 July 2016)

After seeing this generally disagreeable assault on the senses, I need a rest now, possibly even a rest home for a while.
I last saw this turkey when it was released in 1971, the year that I graduated from college. I couldn't appreciate it at the age of 22 and still don't like it at the ripe old age of 67. I decided to watch it again because I had just viewed Kubrick's outstanding "Paths of Glory", one of the best films that I have ever seen on the subject of war and the arrogant abuse of power, and I was very curious as to why IMDb subscribers rated this film a stunning 8.3, which is very rare for any movie and ranks it as one of the top 100 movies of all time. After my second viewing, I'm at an even bigger loss about this very high rating and ranking than I was 45 ago.
I believe that the often unbearable level of intense brutality in this movie is enough to provoke actual, real-life bloodshed in persons who are already inclined to be violent, specifically against women and defenseless elderly people. As my country, the USA, is currently experiencing a very dangerous epidemic of horrifying, violent incidents, including several recent mass murders, movies such as this, are not at all helpful to our present situation, which has become a national crisis. I can't see a single benefit of this violence to me as a viewer or to my society as a whole. That having been said, I still believe in the first amendment and in freedom of expression, but after seeing this relentless display of viciousness, most of which seems to be merely for its own sake or perhaps fulfills a desire to shock viewers and for no other purpose, I find myself struggling with my own deepest convictions.
I read several of the glowing reviews of this movie by others on IMDb. Many described this as a "masterpiece" and an "extraordinary work of art" without clearly explaining why and without the use of adequate, specific examples that support their high ratings and adoration.
Personally, I could not relate to the central character, to his vicious gang, or to any other of the movie's unlikable or weak personalities in any way. During the "rehabilitation" phase of the movie, I could not understand what society or government, today or in the future, would elect to employ the methods that were used. The future world that was created, consisting of ugly, vulgar works of art and interior designs, abandoned theaters, perverse behavior, uncontrollable sex drive, constant physical abuse, disorder, neglect, filth, and general disrespect for anything and everything, was just too creepy for me to want to experience for even one hour, let alone two hours and seventeen minutes. Another major offense was the inappropriate use of Beethoven's magnificent music as it accompanies the most unpleasant visual images conceivable. It's too bad that deceased artists have no say as to how their works are used after they are gone, but who ever said that life was fair? I gave this movie a rating of four out of ten only because it did manage to produce a response of utter revulsion from within me, but I can't think of any other accomplishment. Not my cup of tea.