One of The Best Film's Ever Made!

Rating: 7/10 (3 February 2005)

The Story
Stanley Kubrick's dystopian masterpiece is set in the near future where urban thugs run wild and new methods of crime deterrence are being explored. Career gang member Alex (Malcolm McDowell) is nabbed by the police and offered the chance to a commuted sentence if he undergoes a kind of surgical therapy. One where his brain does not allow him to execute his violent urges.
What is A Clockwork Orange?
a clockwork (mechanical, artificial, robotic) human being (orange - similar to orang-utan, a hairy ape-like creature), and the Cockney phrase from East London, "as queer as a clockwork orange" - indicating something bizarre internally, but appearing natural, human, and normal on the surface
The Facts
A Clockwork Orange was released in 1971. It was made for around 2,000,000 dollars and pulled in around 26,000,000 dollars at the box office. I believe it originally got an "X" rating. If I'm not mistaken it was one of two movies to get an original "X" rating and get nominated for best picture at The Academy Awards. The film was banned in the UK until 1999 when Stanley Kubrick, the director, died. I think he got death threats from the film's release in the UK so he decided not to have it released there until he died. In 1973 it was released with an "R" rating. In my opinion A Clockwork Orange is one of the best films ever made. I loved it the first time that I saw it. That may mean that I'm really screwed up or that I have decent taste in movies. A Clockwork Orange is based on a novel by Anthony Burgess that I have not read. It was released in 1962 if I'm not mistaken. The book as well as the film was controversial in it's original release. To me, A Clockwork Orange is one big piece of art. I'm not sure if it is just the direction or all the symbolism in the picture. I can see why some are turned off by the film but most enjoy it. This was the second Stanley Kubrick film I had seen. The first film I saw of his was The Shining. I saw it when I was nine or ten. It was made nine years after this picture. Stanley Kubrick has said that if Malcolm McDowell was not available he would probably not have even made this picture. Imagine a world with no Clockwork Orange. From all of the reviews I have read for this film everyone agrees that it is a good adaption of the book and very close to it. The main job of the film is to make us, as an audience, connect with the hoodlum Alex. In the beginning I was disgusted with him and despised him. Maybe I'm screwed up but by the end of the picture I care for him and, that is where Kubrick succeeds the most with this film. Kubrick's touch shines in this classic like a star. His artistic feel gives the film a unique and beautiful premise. All the acting is good. Malcolm McDowell is easily the best. No one could have portrayed Alex like him. The picture itself has lots of violence and nudity. At first it just disturbed me, but I grew with the premise and it did not bother me as much. If I were you I would watch it alone. You may get embarrassed easily if you watch it with others. At many times I felt like I was watching a horror picture, moreso at the beginning. I was scared for the victims and felt their terror. The soundtrack was really good. I would call it more of a score. It was perfectly unique just like the film itself. I now like Beethoveen or Ludwig Van way more than I ever thought I would. Every piece is perfect for each particular scene. I also liked Alex's rendition of "Singing In The Rain". He wasn't too bad. The film includes it's own language, Nadsat, which I found amusing at times and confusing at others. The first moment that I stopped hating Alex and started caring about his character was the scene in which he was released from prison and went home to find his belongings and room taken. I felt bad because he had gone through so much and went home where he thought he was loved to find nothing for him. He had to start all over. He should have thought about the consequences before he did his actions. What I loved about the film the most is how no matter how hard he tries to change he always has that evil inside him. He is "A Clockwork Orange". Make sure not to miss out on this fantastic classic that Stanley Kubrick did brilliantly.