"What we were after now was the old surprise visit. That was a real kick and good for laughs and lashings of the old ultra . " - Alex DeLarge

Rating: 10/10 (3 July 2005)

#1 Best Film of 1971
There are many great filmmakers who are unfortunately not alive today. There was Hitchcock, Curtiz, DeMille, and the list goes on and on. Eventually you'll get to Stanley Kubrick, director of such films as 2001: A Space Odyssey, Dr. Strangelove or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the , Full Metal Jacket, Barry Lyndon, and my personal favorite, A Clockwork Orange. Out of all the filmmakers to ever live, I always thought Kubrick was the finest. His meticulous and carefully crafted works of art (his films) are superior to any other filmmaker on a good day (in my opinion). Out of all his incredible achievements, I find the best is 'A Clockwork Orange', the controversial - Best Picture nominee about in youth in our society, well a future society.
In futuristic Britian, young Alexander DeLarge (Malcom McDowell) and his droogies enjoy pranks, robbing, izing, , spiked milk and 'a bit of the old ultra '. One day while Alex and his crew (Dim, Georgie, and Lodger) are izing and eventually ing a "dirty old sumka" with a lot of cats, Alex's crew decides to turn against him, and leaving him alone at the scene for the cops to come. Young and trouble-making Alex's life gets turned upside down when he goes to prison. In prison he becomes very interested in religion and the and pain Christ went through. Not because of sorrow for Christ, but because of his obsession with inflicting upon people. He day-dreams of being a Roman, whipping Jesus while he carries the cross, and having s with the temple chambermaids. One day, Alex comes across an experimental medical procedure that supposedly cures violent criminals, and decides to take up the offer so he can get out of jail. The rest of the film follows him in the procedure and the consequences, hardships and situations that follow.
'A Clockwork Orange' is such a well-made production it almost can't even be considered a film, it should be considered a work of art. Stanley Kubrick beautifully molds this dark, dim and disturbing tale based on Anthony Burgess' novel, and turns it into his own glorious vision. Kubrick achieves utter and absolute perfection in his direction, and he also provides a magnificent screenplay filled to the brim with intriguing almost Shakespeare-ish sort of dialogue in which Alex speaks. The acting is a cut above the rest also. Malcolm McDowell owns the role of Alex DeLarge, and plays him with intensity, passion, great understanding and an almost shocking realism. You don't see Mr. McDowell on the screen, you see his character Alexander DeLarge, a young mischievous monster in the making. The film also stars Patrick Magee, Warren Clarke, Carl Duering, Adrienne Corri, Anthony Sharp, James Marcus, and Michael Bates in a very comedic role as chief guard at Alex's prison. The film garners neat cinematography, awesome set decoration, interesting costumes and a highly inventive and exceptional vision thanks to the brilliant Stanley Kubrick.
'A Clockwork Orange' is my favorite Kubrick film, and that is saying a hell of a lot. Others may not agree because it doesn't have the awe of '2001' or the cult following of 'Dr. Strangelove'. I love it to though, because it's so different then his (Kubrick's) other work and that is what makes it so special. It was one of the most controversial films of the 1970s because of it's extreme and , and it had to be cut from it's original version (now restored on DVD today) to receive an 'R' rating it all along deserved. In conclusion, this is an incredible work of art (one of the two only - features to be nominated for the Oscar for Best Picture) that will be adored by the film buffs and detested by the weak-hearted. I highly recommend it. Grade: A
MADE MY TOP 300 LIST AT #12